Era
by uncreative pseudonym
Summary: Years after Naruto, something begins to threaten all of the shinobi world. It arises from the world, and it will take the world to stop it. Now if only Sakura and Ino would stop being distracted by Sasuke, and Hinata wasn't trapped in the whole mess...
1. Chance

My admitted want of thoroughness requires me to mention that my customary preface is at the end of the first chapter.

* * *

Chapter 1: Chance

Shadows fell away behind the shinobi as he raced into the light. Breathing heavily he prevented himself from falling by a hand to the nearby street lamp. It didn't provide him with the slightest bit of protection, but by instinct he had ran toward the light.

One place was as good as any, out here. This far from any other shinobi or decent civilization, the people tracking him could follow him anywhere. He shuddered and began to shiver, though not from the cold. What was following him he wasn't completely certain, but he didn't want to believe it was human. Deep within his mind, he knew it was, but this fact refused to penetrate the thick cloud of fear in his mind.

"So the little shinobi had finally stopped to catch his breath." The voice was smooth and polished, yet somehow terribly malevolent. "It is fitting, in a way, that you chose this place to run to." From the darkness another man stepped, looking down at the panting shinobi with a slightly amused expression fixed on his face.

"Get back!" The shinobi hurled several shuriken toward his opponent, who batted them out of the air with a closed fist.

"As I was saying, you shinobi are well known for always finishing the task you have been given, no matter what the circumstances. Ironically enough, the very man you were sent to assassinate lies in the building on this very block. Of course, I can't allow you to go any further, but I thought I would mention the irony."

With a burst of chakra to the soles of his shoes, the shinobi burst into the air. He didn't get far before something snapped around his leg, jerking him back down to the street heavily. Whatever it was retracted back into the shadows, where he could see another man crouched by the ground. The next moment a hand gripped his neck, slamming him backward and into the wall of the building.

"How shameful. A shinobi, running away from his duty? And are these actually tears? I thought that a shinobi was supposed to hide their feelings. No shinobi cries," the man mocked. "But now I sound like a grade school bully, don't I?" His gaze narrowed dangerously. "A grade school bully who picks on the weak simply because he is strong. Sound familiar?"

"Enough," another voice entered the conversation. Both the shinobi and his attacker glanced to the side, to discover another man had stepped from the building. He was wearing a very similar suit, slightly rumpled as if it had been used for several days. In reality he looked very ordinary, but to the shinobi the light falling over his face were terrifying. "Ceriman, stop chatting around."

"If you insist, Brother," the large man hissed. His hand tightened, and the shinobi's world grew brighter and brighter, everything fading away into a blank whiteness...

* * *

"These two statues, kids, have been the place of some of the greatest battles in modern time," Konohamaru explained. For once, he didn't need to try to keep the kids in line; they were all far too awed by the massive statues on either side of the river. Dozens of academy students lined the side of the boat with their mouths hanging slackly and their eyes wide. "For example, Sasuke-sama and Naruto-sama fought here in their youth. These battles are part of why both of the statues are so damaged; they were built extremely well and bound wi-"

"Hey, mister!" one of the students waved a hand at him. "Is it true that you actually knew Naruto-sama?"

Konohamaru grinned. "You bet. When I was just about your age we were huge rivals."

"I guess that changed, didn't it?" another of the kids said, folding his arms cynically.

"Hey now! No mouthing off! Not if you guys want another field trip!" The teacher's strict expression relaxed to another grin. "But hey, we're both still young. I'll still beat him, one of these days."

Several shuriken whizzed through the air, and Konohamaru only barely deflected them with a kunai. Eyes wide, he immediately began glancing about their boat for the source of the attack. Who would attack Hidden Leaf in a time of peace? A group of children, no less. His eyes fastened on a man standing some distance away on the water.

"You!" He remembered this person, remembered them all too well. They'd considered themselves rivals for a while, but then he'd left for a mission in the capital of Fire Country and vanished. Konohamaru had thought he was dead... "What are you doing attacking a bunch of students?"

"They gave you the teaching job!" the other shinobi growled at him. "There wasn't any reason for them to choose you over me, except that you're the Third Hokage's grandson! It isn't fair!"

"But why are you trying t-"

"Die!" the shinobi reached into two pouches, pulling out two handfuls of shuriken. As he moved, however, Konohamaru leapt off the boat, making it rock dangerously in the water. He grabbed his rival's wrists before they could fire the barrage of weapons in the direction of the children.

"Snap out of it!" Konohamaru hissed, doing his best to hide the cold feeling growing in the pit of his stomach. "What are you going to accomplish by attacking a bunch of kids? Or me, for that matter? It isn't going to change anything!"

"That's what you think." The other shinobi managed to rip his arms from Konohamaru's grip, but the Chuunin leapt over his head. Whirling, the shinobi hurled his shuriken in the opposite direction of the children. They slashed through Konohamaru's body, which dissolved into a puff of smoke a moment later.

Appearing just behind his opponent, Konohamaru landed a kick to the back of his head. He pitched forward, then sprung off the water and landed on his feet some distance away. His hands began moving together in hand seals, but Konohamaru was too distracted to notice. There was a man clad entirely in black near the children, hacking at the base of the boat. One of the academy students launched a stream of flame at him, but the attacker easily evaded and continued to sink the boat.

"No!" Konohamaru abandoned his battle and sprinted across the water, only to stop short as the other shinobi flashed into being in front of him.

"Running away already?" he hissed. Over his shoulder, Konohamaru could see that the other man had created a large hole in the boat and was now pulling a kunai on the kid who had attacked him. He gritted his teeth and began to move; _if I let his blade go through my side I should be able to-_

A pink ring of chakra suddenly dropped from above, wrapping around Konohamaru's opponent and binding him in place. From some distance to the side Konohamaru's former partner gave him a nod, twin braids bouncing. Returning it, Konohamaru shot around the now immobile shinobi.

He barely leapt in the way of the kunai in time to take it in the wrist. The man before him seemed somewhat annoyed, and the student behind him breathed a sigh of relief. Pulling the blade from his arm, Konohamaru tossed it aside, too angry to wince.

"Who are you?" he demanded. His opponent merely leapt up to his level on the sinking boat and struck. The first of his blows Konohamaru managed to block, but the second sent him sailing back and crashing through one of the boat railings. His students gasped in shock, and the assassin leapt after their teacher, blade sliding to his hands.

Midway down he was sent flying by a kick from the side. A new warrior landed on the water just beside Konohamaru, who was making it to his feet. He pushed his glasses back up his nose and gave a brief nod.

"We'll get the kids to safety," he told his former partner. "You handle this guy."

"Right!" The man in black, Konohamaru was still at a loss to identify him or his village, was back on his feet, charging across the water. Bursting off the water, Konohamaru met him head on, his kunai clashing loudly against the man's blade. For a brief moment they traded blows, and then Konohamaru leapt back, realizing he was outmatched. This guy was powerful, and it was going to take a serious jutsu to finish him.

As his opponent charged, Konohamaru smashed a chakra laden foot into the water before him. A geyser erupted around his opponent, who was for a moment blinded. Some distance away, Konohamaru appeared and began flashing through hand seals. If he could just manage to build enough chakra, he should be able to pull this off...

Behind him his opponent burst from the water, eyes blazing and blade flashing. A pink ring descended from the sky to drop around him, but he leapt over it. Glancing over his shoulder, Konohamaru's eyes widened in horror, but it was too late for him to do anything about the blow-

From the shore a green, plane-like bolt of chakra flew through the air, hammering into the attacking warrior from the side. He crashed heavily into one of the cliffs, sending dust through the air. Looking to the shore, Konohamaru saw his partner, hands still in a kata, smile just slightly.

"Finish him off, Konohamaru-kun!"

Nodding back, Konohamaru finished his jutsu just as the other warrior dropped back to the water, landing on his feet. He took off, just as Konohamaru seemed to dissipate. For a moment the assassin paused, then flesh sprang to life around him.

"Harem no Jutsu!" Konohamaru cried. For the first time in the battle, the opposing warrior in black spoke.

"Just what the bloody hell is this supposed to be?"

At that moment Konohamaru grinned. Each part of the jutsu was not a solid body, but rather an illusion... surrounding an exploding note. The seals erupted in flame, and an inferno exploded around the shinobi. Gigantic waves burst from the explosion, nearly reaching the shore. When it faded, the remains of the enemy were lying face down in the water.

Eyes nearly closing, Konohamaru dropped forward toward the water the next moment. His partner caught him gently and kept him on his feet. Coughing water out of his lungs, Konohamaru tried to clear his head. He didn't remember being this tired in quite a long time; the jutsu had taken more out of him than he'd realized.

"He's dead," his other partner announced abruptly. The other two glanced up, and realized she was standing beside the shinobi from Hidden Leaf, not the mysterious attacker. He was still bound by the pink ring of chakra, but sagging to the side. "Probably poison."

"Alert Hokage-sama," Konohamaru hissed. "We'll get home ourselves, just get there as fast as you can."

"But, Konohamar-"

"Do it! This is bigger than us. A lot bigger."

* * *

She was playing with her cup again. Just a slow rolling motion around the rim, both hands moving it in endless circles, both eyes fixed down on it. Though she told herself that she couldn't help it, she was even more worried that she really could. But yet she kept doing it, rolling her cup the instant her thoughts drifted away.

It wasn't so much the motion itself that bothered her, it was the fact that she knew she was just doing it to burn nervous energy. That nervous energy exemplified everything that hated about herself: her restlessness, her lack of confidence, her inability to make herself understood. These things haunted her, because she knew that years hadn't changed them, and that they would probably be with her for the rest of her life.

Hyuga Hinata sighed heavily and set her cup down just as heavily. She would leave it there, not roll it, not make any other nervous gestures. Blinking solid white eyes, she glanced around the room once more, just to make sure of her surroundings.

The restaurant was fairly busy, and felt even more so because it was so small. There were people bustling about in every direction, waiters carrying trays and people speaking loudly across tables. She had chosen this restaurant because it was so small, thinking that no one else would be there.

Bad idea; why did she always do things like that? Apparently this restaurant was a fairly popular one, though there had been a lull when she had arrived. By the time she had sat down, it was already too late. Now she was trapped in a crowd, and she was nearly paralyzed in place.

Long ago the meal had come and gone, and now she was alone with her water. No one had sat at her table, it was a small one in a corner, and for that she was grateful. An older man glanced in her direction, a bushy eyebrow raised, then quickly looked away. Biting her lip, Hinata tried to convince herself that it didn't mean anything. People had been glancing at her for some time, but no one had tried to talk to her.

Again she sighed, and looked down at the water in her cup. This was supposed to be a vacation. Normal people had fun when they got off work, didn't they? Yet she was miserable, just hoping that it would be over soon. Of course, she had no one to blame but herself; she had chosen to come here.

Konoha felt so very far away. She had never really appreciated how much she was used to it until she found herself in a new and unknown city. Fire Country was a lot larger than she had ever thought, a lot more desolate than it seemed on a map. This was a fairly large city; she had only gone because Neji had suggested it. But it was too strange, too different: there were no clan houses, no training fields, nothing that she had grown to rely on at home. All of the people were strangers, and that frightened her.

A slight smile flickered onto her face, but quickly wilted. It was funny that all these people frightened her so much. They were just normal people, merchants and professionals, all trying to go about their daily lives. None of them stood a chance of hurting her in any way; not a Chuunin of the Leaf.

Thinking of rank only depressed her even more. She should never have taken the Chuunin Examination again. But she had wanted to prove to herself that she could do it, change a little bit of who she was, become a better person. Well, she had managed to pass it, but it hadn't done her much good. In fact, it had made her life worse.

Leading a team hadn't gone well at all, as she began to panic whenever she had to make decisions. Teaching had gone even worse, because she was scared of some of the students. Eventually she'd just been put in the position of a Jounin but with lower level missions, and even in that she wasn't very good. Why did she mess up everything she did? Why was she so incompetent? Neji said that it was ridiculous for her to feel this way, that she was a worthy heir of the Hyuga if she would just apply herself. Hearing that didn't make her feel any better.

She was doing it again! Taking a deep breath, Hinata set down the glass and again vowed to stay away from it.

"Hey! Look who's here!"

Immediately Hinata looked up, shrinking back in the same motion. She recognized the voice after a moment and relaxed, but only slightly. There wasn't much reason to relax.

"H-hi Ino-chan." There; she had actually managed to reply without making a fool out of herself. That probably wouldn't last.

Ino Yamanaka slid into the booth beside Hinata, giving her a cross between a smirk and a grin. She always made Hinata so terribly nervous, as well as inadequate. Ino was everything that she wasn't: bold, pretty, strong. At the moment she was obviously on vacation as well, as Hinata was fairly certain her uniform wasn't fishnet and tight leather. There was no chance she could pretend to be leaving now, though; Ino had effectively boxed her in next to the wall.

"I never thought I'd see another shinobi in a backward, normal city like this," Ino told her, flicking back a lock of shimmering blond hair. "It's been really annoying dealing with all these people; they don't have any idea about clans or jutsus or anything."

Even had Hinata wanted to respond, she wouldn't have been able to. Ino's words fell like a waterfall: unending and swiftly. She realized that she was rolling her cup again already but didn't try to stop herself.

"Aren't you on vacation too?" Ino asked, raising an eyebrow and glancing down at Hinata. "Why are you still in uniform?"

"I-"

"You really need to relax a bit and get out of those things. At least wear something a little more flattering." Ino added nearly inaudible. "You certainly need it."

Blushing and shrinking back, Hinata hid by taking a sip of water. Ino didn't take the slightest notice and continued on. She cut off her tirade briefly enough to order food, but basically kept up a conversation with herself, occasionally using Hinata as an object in the conversation.

"I thought this place would be more fun, but it's surprisingly boring. There's basically nothing to do at night." Briefly she looked to the side, then whispered in Hinata's ear as if she had a great secret. "I really just came here to get closer to Sasuke-kun. Rumor has it he's in the Northern parts of Fire Country. This is the biggest city far north, and I was kind of hoping to find him."

Quickly averting her gaze, Hinata avoided looking Ino in the eyes while she talked about Sasuke. If Ino could look at her, she might be able to see a bit of what Hinata was feeling. That would only make her talk a lot more, and be insulting, and generally make her feel even worse.

She couldn't understand how Ino could still be so obsessed with Sasuke. Twelve year old girls could have crushes, and they could even last quite a few years for someone like Sasuke. That much she understood. But how could anyone remain in exactly the same state for so many years? Of course, their obsession had been transformed over the years as they grew older, but it still wasn't any better.

They were all, Ino and her kind, still convinced that they could capture the Uchiha's eye. This dream had never really faded for them, though it had likewise obtained new incarnations. Hinata had long since given up on anyone liking her, at least in that way. Naruto... a soft smile appeared on Hinata's face.

Now she really didn't "like" anyone, as Ino would put it. And she was completely fine with that; it made her so much more free. Part of her told herself she just thought this because no one could ever like her back, but she determinedly told that part that it was lying. For all her failings, she did have some friends, friends who actually cared about her.

"Hinata-chan!"

Looking up, nearly as panicked as before, Hinata glanced at Ino blankly. "I'm s-sorry. Did you say something?"

"I asked you the question twice," Ino scowled. "I asked you what rank you are now?"

"I'm still a Chuunin," Hinata admitted meekly.

"Still?" Ino asked, incredulous. "Have you even tried to enter the Jounin Trials?"

"N-"

"That's silly of you. I'm the captain of the West Division of the Anbu now. I never realized just how many Chuunin they let into the ranks these days. Little punks with too much power who get the rank early. Trying to organize all of them is a real pain, and I might have to ask the Hokage for a better job. Of course, you know how he is- hey!"

"What are the chances of this?" Haruna Sakura stood before the table, hands on her hips, head at one side. The other two female shinobi glanced up at her, Hinata nervously and Ino with a smile that turned into a glower.

"And what are _you_ doing here?"

"It seems you look a much like a slut as always," Sakura sneered.

"At least I have something nicer than a stinky old uniform," Ino returned. The next moment both of them grinned at each other, and Sakura sat opposite them. Hinata shrank back further, not wanting to get anywhere between the two of them. Their eyes made it obvious that they were actually good friends, but for some reason they felt the need to show this in such aggressive ways. She couldn't begin to understand them, and so merely stayed quiet, as she usually did.

"I, unlike you, am actually on an assignment," Sakura said, glancing at her rival down her nose. "Something very important."

"And yet you have time to go to restaurants?"

"Oh, hush. The best part about this job is that," she dropped to a whisper that transformed into a giggle midway through, "it takes me closer to Sasuke-kun!"

Sighing yet again, Hinata tried to sink into the background and keep entirely away from the conversation. Unfortunately, her sigh caught Sakura's attention, and she refocused her gaze for a moment.

"Oh, hi, Hinata-chan. Are you here on assignment too? Something with a whiny merchant?"

"Um, no," Hinata answered. "Actually, I just finished an A rank mission and they said I needed a break."

"You don't look like you're having any fun," Sakura observed easily. Hinata didn't respond, but just began pushing her index fingers against each other. _Please, don't keep talking about me._ "We might need to do something about that, eh, Ino-chan?"

"I think that sounds like a great idea," Ino said brightly. "We should take you shopping and see if we can find you something decent to wear!" Abruptly she adopted a sickeningly sweet smile. "But don't you have a mission to do, Sakura-chan? Mayhaps you better do that while Hinata-chan and I go alone."

"Like you have any taste," Sakura mocked. "I wouldn't trust you wish dressing my dog!"

"You have a dog?"

"Well, no, but..."

Their conversation faded away as Hinata realized that something was wrong. They continued to argue, and their nearly constant chatter hadn't allowed her to realize it earlier. Sound in the restaurant had dropped significantly, and it was clearing out. There were a few waiters and a few parties still at tables, but now things were strangely vacant. Another group hurried out the door, seeming in quite the hurry.

Biting her lower lip, Hinata closed her eyes. When they opened again the table caved away, letting her see the floor below. As inconspicuously as possible she glanced around the restaurant, checking to see what was wrong. It wasn't closing time yet, not even past the dinner hour. Why was everyone leaving so quickly?

Only a few groups were still in the restaurant now. There were the three shinobi, then there was a drunk in the booth over. Several people sat at one of the tables, talking softly, and there was a heavy-coated man by the desk, waiting to pay his bill. Her eyes flickered closer to the ceiling, and abruptly Hinata gasped. Two men were standing one level up, glancing down below. Both had chakra carefully built around them, and one was carrying a short sword.

She was just about to try to say something when someone moved violently. The apparent drunk abruptly leapt to his feet, whirling in the air and slashing with a long katana. In a flash the blade swept down, splitting through the panel between booths and aiming to sever Sakura completely in half. Breath caught in Hinata's throat, and she couldn't bring herself to call a warning-

Sakura's hands slapped over her head on either side of the blade, stopping it cold. Turning swiftly and pushing the sword to the side, she attacked with a flickering sweep of her hand. By her hip she snagged a kunai, which embedded itself in the would-be assassin's elbow the next moment. He gasped in pain and the blade fell from his hands.

"Is that the best you can do?" Sakura smirked, glancing over her shoulder at him with a toss of her hair. "You'll have to do a lot better than that if you want to take down a shinobi." With an angry roar the man attempted to strike her with his bare hands, and he earned a kunai to the forehead for it. He fell back against the opposite booth with a thud.

Around the restaurant, there was stunned silence. The other party was staring in horror, the heavily-cloaked man stepped back nervously. All the restaurant staff were rushing in, as if to do something but without anything to do. Ino and Sakura had both stood, and were moving over to check the fallen warrior.

"L-look out!" Hinata called. Her warning came just as one of the men on the ceiling performed a final hand seal. Columns of flame shot from his eyes, and the floor beneath him lit like a torch. It caved away instantly, burning floorboards crashing to the level below as the two shinobi landed heavily. By this point, however, all three of their targets were gone, bodies dissolving into smoke.

Completing her flip, Ino landed on one of the restaurant tables, hands moving to where her kunai pouches should have been. Great; she really wished she was better equipped for a battle. Not that she expecting to be fighting every time she entered a restaurant. Fortunately, she kept backups on her at all times, and-

The table jolted into the air, knocking her off balance before she could get a weapon to hand. It shot upward the next instant, breaking its way through the roof and flying into the sky. By that point, however, Ino had flipped off it. Landing on the floor this time, she instantly identified her attacker. His hands were together in a hand seal she didn't recognize, and he wasn't moving.

_No way are you completing that jutsu. _Rushing forward, Ino flipped a kunai to hand easily and struck, aiming to embed the weapon in his temple. Midway there, however, nearby chairs hurtled from their places toward her. She managed to skid to a halt and bash them aside, one moment before her opponent's boot connected with her face.

Flying back, Ino crashed into a nearby wall and dropped to the floor. A telekinetic jutsu. Great. But she didn't have much time to complain, because the enemy ninja was bearing down upon her, a blade singing down toward her neck. The best she could do was roll out of the way, and that was barely enough.

Midway across the floor Ino struck it with one hand, launching herself into the air. She landed just in time to see another table flying toward her. All she could do was raise both arms before her; the wood splintered away but drove her backward. The instant she dared open her eyes she did so, to find her opponent waiting, sword in hand, chakra building around him.

"Not bad," Ino admitted, tossing back a lock of hair. "But in Hidden Leaf that just wouldn't cut it."

* * *

Seeing her opponent's hand rise to his mouth, Hinata executed a body switching jutsu as quickly as possible. Chakra exploding around her, she grabbed a nearby chair, slapped an illusion around it and sprang away. She was sailing toward one of the walls when her opponent exhaled, flames consuming the chair completely and scorching the wall.

Lowering his hand, the shinobi immediately realized that he had missed. Evidently she was better than reports had indicated. Best to finish her as quickly as possible, before the two more dangerous targets could get involved. They were definitely good enough that he only wanted to take them on one at a time.

Ducking as fast as possible, he narrowly avoided a kick at the back of his head. He tried to catch the leg, but it was gone too quickly. She was overhead, and moving faster than he had expected. Not good. Still, he could probably hit her with an uppercut- at that moment both her hands touched his shoulders, and she sprung away from him. Now what had that accomplished?

She wasn't facing him now, and he rushed forward in a violent attack. His eyes narrowed as she flowed around his attack, and tried to punch him in the motion. All she managed was a light tap on the back. Good. Fast, but weak. He could probably handle this one without any trouble. Hopefully the others could handle the other two.

Completing her spin, Hinata found solid footing just in time to realize that her opponent was just a clone. She recognized his true location the next instant, but not quickly enough. A knee struck her stomach, knocking her back. In the same motion he also clamped each hand on her upper arms, driving her backward and pinning her to one wall of the restaurant.

Smirking at the girl, the shinobi gathered chakra without seals and concentrated it in his mouth. About half power should be enough to scorch her to a crisp. Hinata shrank away from him, but also moved at the same instant. Abruptly her hand broke free from his grip and clamped over his face.

With a growl he knocked her hand away, and released his finishing attack. The jutsu spluttered out midway through, leaving him blowing only hot air. She struck in a sideways motion, but only barely traced a line across his stomach. He moved with his dodge and smashed a leg into the side of her face.

Flying backward, Hinata managed to flip in the air and land gracefully. Her opponent just laughed, observing the blood on her lip.

"Damaged already? You're weak."

* * *

Observing the battle calmly, the man in the heavy coat abruptly made a violent movement. In an instant both of his hands ripped from his coat, hurling shuriken across the restaurant. They barely had time to move before they curled and struck Sakura, sending her bleeding body into the air. One target down...

Cold steel was pressed against his neck the next moment, a hand painfully forcing his arm behind him. He tried to turn, but the pressure of the kunai immediately intensified. All he could see was a wisp of pink hair. A drop of sweat began to work its way down his face.

"H-how did you know?"

"They leave the check at the table," Sakura told him. "The desk is only used to wait to be seated. You couldn't have been more suspicious." She tightened her grip, and he gave a grunt of pain. "Now, why did you attack us?"

"You think I'll give you information?" he asked, with a forced laugh.

"That or I kill you."

"Hasn't anyone ever told you what a shinobi is?" There was a loud crack the next second, and some green liquid shot from his mouth. Instantly he slumped in her arms, all resistance gone. _Poison,_ Sakura realized, _probably in a pill in his mouth. Someone is interested in staying secret._ There was no way of knowing what village had hired him, either, because he was dressed ordinarily. Perhaps they could get more information from the others.

Glancing up, Sakura analyzed the other battles taking place in the restaurant. The shinobi Ino was fighting seemed to have killed one of the customers, but the rest had gotten away. They were still locked in combat, but Ino could probably handle him. But where had Hinata gone?

Her question was answered the next instant as Hinata exploded through a nearby wall, flying from the kitchen to crash into the floor. The other assassin was breaking from the kitchen, intending to drive a boot into her face. Interesting; his forehead protector was completely blank. Barely jumping into the air, he brought his foot down violently-

Sakura flashed in from the side, delivering a kick of her own into the side of his head. He hurtled away, crashing into one of the walls. Broke a pretty expensive looking picture, too. _We sure as hell aren't paying for this,_ Sakura thought. They'd better find out who was responsible for this quickly.

"Thank you, Sakura-chan," Hinata said, over Sakura's shoulder. The female shinobi glanced back at the other, raising an eyebrow, but just shrugged. Time to take this guy down.

* * *

Flipping backward, Ino narrowly avoided a hail of plates raining in her direction. This restaurant was a terrible place for a fight; her opponent had basically unlimited ammunition to hurl at her. Until she could take the fight to closer quarters, he was going to keep the upper hand.

Again he clamped his hands together, and a storm of silverware built around him. They flooded forward the next instant, forming a solid column of metal flying at her. This time, however, Ino was ready to counter attack. She hurled as many shuriken as she was able and leapt away at the last second. Her weapons sheared through the floating silverware, several striking her opponent. He staggered backward but did not fall.

That was all the shuriken she carried on her. Only two kunai left, and she couldn't afford to throw them. Best just to finish him now, while he was weak. But while Ino was in the process of charging, her opponent abruptly stabilized himself. His blade shot into the air of its own accord, slashing in front of her and tracing a line of blood along her face.

With the katana buried in the ceiling, however, he was left only with impromptu weapons. Wiping away blood, Ino let herself grin. How much more could he throw at her now? He had moved across the restaurant, out of her immediate range, and chakra was building around him violently. Ino waited, doing the same. Abruptly it seemed that everything nearby lifted into the air, then hurled itself toward her.

The projectiles flooded toward Ino from every direction, trapping her in a sphere of attacks. Just before they could strike, however, the other shinobi coughed and shuddered. Everything fell to the ground harmlessly, and Ino stood motionless in a circle of objects.

She grinned, and her opponent's mouth moved. They walked toward each other, movements mirroring each other perfectly. Both slipped a kunai to their hand, and spun it around to stabbing position. Just when their faces were nearly touching, Ino acted.

As violently as possible she pulled her spirit back into her own body and struck, stabbing the kunai into the side of her opponent's face. He didn't recover nearly quickly enough, and the metal went in deep, sending him flying to the side, where he landed heavily. Leaning on both knees and panting, Ino looked around to see how the others had done.

Flames leapt toward her, leaving her only a fraction of a second to avoid being incinerated. The remaining enemy shinobi stood at the edge of the kitchen, hand dropping from his mouth. Did this guy ever quit spewing fire? Sakura and Hinata had leapt to opposite sides of the column of flame, and were just now preparing to attack again.

Before any of them could do so, their opponent dissolved in a puff of smoke. Eyes widening, Ino immediately moved toward the other two. They were apparently thinking the same thing, and the three of them formed a triangle facing out. These guys didn't seem the type to run away. He'd strike again; she was sure of it.

"Do I have to save you guys all the time?" she asked over her shoulder with a smirk.

"I do not need any saving," Sakura sniffed. "I've killed two of them, thank you very much."

"Have you done any damage to him yet?"

"I kicked him," Sakura commented. "I'm not sure Hinata-chan did anything."

"He d-doesn't have usable ch-chakra to his face," Hinata said. She was shivering just slightly. "A-and..."

"That's okay, we understand," Ino told her. "Not everyone can be a first rate shinobi. We'll take it from here."

The floor exploded beneath them the next instant, and their opponent shot into the air, chakra flying around his fist. Ino barely jerked away from the attack, and Hinata flowed around it. Sakura had already taken a step forward and was turning by the time he was landing on the floor, her sandal striking his chin.

He flew backward through the air and landed heavily. When he glanced up, Ino was already flying toward him with her last kunai. There was a loud crack, and then he slumped back to the ground.

A long silence dominated the restaurant, no one daring to speak. Tables and chairs lay splintered across the floor, and there was smashed glass and metal scattered throughout the room. Half of the lights had been broken, and nearly everything was scorched or burning. The décor lay in waste, and one of the surviving cooks was shaking his head sorrowfully.

"Ninjas," he muttered under his break. "Hate 'em."

Sighing heavily, Ino moved back to one of the corpses and began retrieving her shuriken. Sakura began checking the body for any signs. Hinata just drew her arms close to herself and tried to fade into the background. The people who had fled were cautiously returning, and seemed terrified by the aftermath.

"An attack by unknown enemies on neutral soil," Sakura thought aloud, voice breaking the silence. "Four opponents of varying level and style. Treaties between every major shinobi village and official peace between all countries." She glanced up at the other two and took a deep breath. "I think we've gotten ourselves into something a lot bigger than I expected."

* * *

This story will be updated in two weeks with another chapter. Now, however, there are a few points that I wish to get out of the way, to clarify everything with those who may be reading.

One thing that must constantly be kept in mind regarding this story: it was written before the completion of Naruto. Hence, I didn't make any effort to guess at what Kishimoto Masashi would do with his characters. I have set this at an inspecific time in the future, using my own chronology of events that will be left vague. If Kishimoto contradicts anything in this story (those character deaths have a way of throwing a wrench in the works), consider it an alternate universe.

I will note that this story was planned prior to the three year training jump in Naruto, so character style directions were not known to me. This is most noticeable in the character of Sakura, who is not a medical shinobi in this story. Believe me, had I known about this development, it would have made my task much easier. However, it was not practical to change such things retroactively, especially because the manga is continually being produced.

For this story I have used Japanese suffixes. This is solely for the purpose of adding a different layer of depth to the story. I hope that it does not mar the reading of this work for anyone; if you are not at least vaguely familiar with them you may want to become so or ignore the suffixes entirely (which are not necessary for understanding the story).

Another word before the story begins: Yes, this story is listed partially under the romance category due to what is commonly termed a pairing. However, I feel that to reveal it now would cheapen the story, and make the reading of it more an exercise in futility than anything interesting. I won't claim that it will be difficult to figure out who these characters are, but at least I can avoid that part of the ending being a foregone conclusion.

This chapter, being introductory, is somewhat longer than the others will be. They are, however, grouped based on plot, so the lengths will vary frequently. Hopefully I will be able to update on a regular and exact basis. A final word: if you do not review the story, I will not be aware that you read it at all. Feedback, even limited feedback, is appreciated.


	2. Mission Unknown

I have one particular request for feedback on this chapter: you will note all suffixes have been removed. In your opinion, is this a positive or negative change? A neutral response will lead to the suffixes remaining in the story.

Further notes will be placed after the chapter.

-

Chapter 2: Mission Unknown

Slowly Hinata sank back into the chair, almost feeling as if she shouldn't be sitting in it. It was too nice; certainly a lot nicer than what she had in her own room. This place probably cost two or three times what she generally spent, and she felt terribly out of place. She blinked white eyes a few times and tried to relax.

After their battle completely destroyed the restaurant, they'd all agreed they needed to stick together. More accurately, Sakura and Ino had agreed, and Hinata hadn't spoken against the idea. They'd chosen Ino's hotel primarily because it was the nicest, though not necessarily the most defensible.

Things had stayed completely quiet after the battle, though everyone was tense because they were being so cautious. They'd traded watches that night, but Hinata hadn't been able to make herself sleep very soundly. This worried her too much to really rest. Why had they attacked? What had they wanted?

Sakura's current theory was that they were assassins. But that didn't help any, because that still left plenty of questions. Not only was there the question of who would want to attack Konoha shinobi, but who had the ability to hire shinobi in such a manner? Furthermore, who had they actually intended to attack? They'd only been together by chance, but the shinobi had attacked all three of them immediately.

Wincing, Hinata felt a bruise on her side and sighed. She didn't feel adequate for trying to figure out what was happening. Sakura was the smart one who could do things like that. All she could do was fight, and Ino was better at that than she was.

"I feel _so_ much better!" Ino beamed, emerging from the bathroom. She was still fairly wet, and her hair was gleaming.

"But you still don't have any better taste," Sakura told her from the balcony, glancing over her shoulder. "I'd like you better in those black Anbu robes." Ino looked as though she was going to vomit.

"Those things are so disgusting. Whoever designed them wasn't thinking about style at all."

"At least it has a mask. Then I wouldn't have to see your ugly face!"

"Oh, yeah? Do they even have a mask big enough for your forehead?"

"I shoul-" Sakura cut off just as the doorbell rang. All of them were immediately glancing at the door, immediately on edge.

"Should we answer it?" Ino hissed.

"It's probably nothing," Sakura whispered back. "Just to be sure, let's check- wait, what about Hinata?" She glanced back at her as if she was just thinking of her existence. "Tell us who's on the other side!"

Nodding silently, Hinata focused and then took her Byukagen to its second phase. Veins stood out on the sides of her head as chakra pulsed into her eyes. Immediately the door vanished before her, and she focused on the person at the other side.

"It's just a courier," she reported. The other two sighed in relief.

"Damn. We were so cautious, too," Ino muttered, moving toward the door.

"Please," Sakura commented, waving a hand in Hinata's direction. "Turn that thing off. Those veins creep me out."

"O-okay."

Meanwhile, Ino wrenched opened the door and glowered at the man standing there.

"I thought I said I didn't want to be disturbed."

"There's a message directly for you." He coughed nervously, not meeting her gaze. "It was to you directly, even though your name isn't on the record, so I thought you might want to look at it." Quietly he held out a scroll. Ino's hand began to move to take it instinctively, but froze.

"Who delivered it?"

"Tall guy in black robes. There was one of those ninja mask things on his face so I couldn't tell much more about him." For a moment Ino didn't respond, then she abruptly snatched the scroll and slammed the door closed. On the other side, she swiftly set it down on the floor and backed away slightly.

"It's one of our scrolls," Sakura observed, glancing down at it.

"But someone could have intercepted one," Ino retorted. "That doesn't mean it's safe."

"I'll check to see if I can sense any embedded chakra." Bending down beside the scroll, Sakura raised two fingers and focused on it. A long moment passed, and Hinata waited nervously. It seemed completely safe to her, but they needed to be especially cautious at the moment. "I think it's safe."

Picking it up, Sakura opened the scroll. Nothing cataclysmic happened, so she moved to the beginning of the message. It was a pretty short one, and she read it aloud after she read it herself.

" 'To S, I and H,' I'm pretty sure that means us, 'We heard about the disappointing experience at the restaurant. This is obviously unacceptable, and we will send someone down immediately. Stay where you are so we can find you without a great deal of unnecessary trouble. It hasn't been easy to contact the restaurant, but when someone comes down they should be able to help you.' It's signed by the 'Konoha Business Bureau' which is obviously complete BS."

"Message in code, though a pretty simple one," Ino decided immediately. "Apparently word of this got back home fast. If they got an Anbu to send it, though, why did they bother being vague?"

"They said 'It hasn't been easy to contact the restaurant' which probably means that they don't know who's doing this. I guess it's just being excessively cautious."

"Most likely they know more," Ino hypothesized, "but information is scarce. Hence, they'll send someone here personally to tell us."

"Things seem more dangerous than we expected," Sakura commented. "It said to stay where you are; that probably is for their sake, but it also generally means that we should be wary of other attackers."

"More of them?" Ino groaned, tossing herself backward onto one of the beds. "I didn't think anyone could privately hire more than four ninja. No one other than the governments, anyway."

"Maybe it is a government?" Sakura suggested. "They could have just been trying to make an unofficial declaration of war. Three elite shinobi of Leaf dead would send a pretty solid message."

"But it didn't work out that way," Ino smirked. "They'll have to do better than that if they want to stop us."

"Just because we beat them doesn't mean we have the upper hand," Sakura said reprovingly. "They have information, which is more important. We could lose even if they don't have any shinobi stronger than us."

Ino just gave a grunt in response, and the three lapsed into silence. Subconsciously Hinata swallowed. This was sounding more and more dangerous by the second. She didn't want to have to fight anyone else. How ironic that this was supposed to be a vacation.

"Who do you think they'll send?" Ino spoke up abruptly. "Probably not just some Anbu like before. I'm guessing only the top people know anything."

"Neji wouldn't leave Konoha," Sakura mused, "and Kiba is far out of the country. Lee is a possibility, but I thought he was involved in some long-term mission way out east. Hey, do you suppose they'd send Sasuke?"

"That would be awesome!" Ino said, sitting up with a grin. "And he was even supposed to be around here, so-"

At that moment there was the sharp noise of metal upon metal, and dozens of shuriken rained in the room. All three of them were taken completely off guard, but none of the weapons struck them. The space around them was covered in shuriken.

"What was that supposed to be?" Ino asked no one in particular. Sakura was wondering the same. They were just a bunch of small shuriken. Abruptly her eyes widened. Just a bunch of small shuriken _engraved with exploding seals_!

"Jump!" she yelled, just before the entire room exploded. She managed to push herself out the window and over the balcony and narrowly avoided the flames. Ino got away, but was struck by the edge of the expanding flames and knocked back. When she fell to the street, however, she was able to land on her feet.

"Who attacked?" Sakura demanded to the air, glancing about them quickly.

"Did Hinata get out?" Ino wondered, almost as an afterthought.

"I, I'm fine." Hinata emerged from behind them, unsinged.

From out of nowhere a massive chakra source flooded toward Hinata, catching her off guard. It was all she could do to back step and narrowly avoid a punch that shattered the concrete she had been standing on. Sensing the same source, Ino and Sakura had leapt away, and were now on opposite sides of the street.

Whoever had attacked, they moved fairly quickly. Before Hinata could even get a good look at them they had used their grip on the ground to swing two wide kicks at her. Still somewhat off balance, she could only avoid the attacks. On his way up, the warrior struck at her with another fist, which she barely managed to block.

He retracted his arm faster than she could use an inner coils strike and he stepped back to avoid any follow up attacks. It was at this point that Hinata finally got a better look at him. The man who had attacked was very slender, and would have seemed weak if not for the chakra she could feel pulsating around him. His robes were simple and white, and he did not carry any apparent weapons. Both of his eyes were slitted, like a cat's. Without meaning to she took a step back, surprised.

Before he could attack again, Sakura and Ino were sweeping toward him in attack. His gaze shifted to them, and he only snapped his fingers. Three forms flew in from opposite sides, the sound of metal on metal evident. All Sakura could do was throw herself back, and Ino barely managed to pull two kunai, deflecting her opponent's strikes. The two warriors that had attacked her fell away without connecting.

Glancing back over her shoulder, Hinata looked at the new attackers. All of them were dressed in similar kimonos, and each had a katana sheathed at his waist. The cat-eyed ninja attacked in the instant she looked away. A bad idea, when fighting someone with the Byukagen.

Spinning back to him, Hinata knocked his arm aside with her left hand and planted her right firmly on his chest. He hurtled backward, barely catching himself on the street. Skidding to a halt, he spat blood and grimaced. Carefully Hinata returned to her stance; he still seemed very able to fight. His tongue flickered out between his teeth, long and thin.

"You're a Hyuga, aren't you?" he asked, eyes narrowed in her direction, practically blazing with hatred. "I have to admit, I wasn't ready for you. But let's try this again, shall we?"

When he attacked again, his style had changed. Hinata had no idea what he was doing, but immediately identified that his style was no longer hard; he was aiming only to touch her. It was too disturbingly like her own style for her to want to risk any actual contact.

Using a wrist to brush aside his attacks, Hinata struck back, only to find her attack swept out of the way as well. Their hands moved in a deadly dance, movements sweeping and graceful yet potentially fatal. Eventually Hinata saw her chance, and moved her hand down to clamp around his forearm.

Chakra burst around his arm, so concentrated it was visible. It repelled Hinata, and she instantly backpedaled. It was fortunate that she did so, because her opponent attacked almost immediately after her blow was blocked. She managed to get far enough away that he ceased his attack, and got a chance to see what he had done.

Around each of his fists now burned chakra in the form of two massive gloves, spikes running back along them. Whatever jutsu he had used, it had repelled her completely. Before he could start another conflict on his own terms, Hinata struck. This time, however, he was able to block with impunity, his chakra gauntlets negating any direct hits she managed.

Ducking beneath a gauntlet swipe, Hinata spun as quickly as she could, hammering her foot into the back of his knee. He grunted and almost went down, but abruptly moved with her motion, smashing his own foot into the back of her head.

She barely managed to get her hands up in time to avoid hitting the concrete face first. The impact still flung her some distance, and she ended up in an ungraceful heap. Rising to her feet unsteadily, she could only look as her opponent smirked, then bore down upon her.

-----------------

"Who are you punks?" Ino asked, raising an eyebrow at the two warriors. They had struck, but as soon as their blows were deflected they had resheathed their blades. Nearby, Sakura was similarly facing off with another warrior, likewise motionless.

"We are samurai," one explained tonelessly. "That is all that matters."

"Samurai?" Sakura almost laughed. "Really?"

As one the warriors struck, swords sliding from their sheaths and slashing violently. Before they could finish their slashes, however, both female shinobi had struck. Sakura slid forward, striking her opponent's chin with her palm, and Ino was spinning between the other two, kicking them apart. All three crashed onto the street heavily.

"How pathetic," Ino muttered, glancing to the side. _Complete idiots._ "Is Hinata still alive?" She saw the battle going on some distance down the street, a confusing whirlwind of movement, and took a step toward it.

"Going so soon?" The voice stopped both shinobi in their tracks. Behind them, the samurai were rising, hands on their blades, fire in their eyes. "If you really think you can hurt us like that, you have another thing coming."

"Uh, oh," Ino muttered. As the samurai charged, she glanced toward Sakura. They nodded to one another. The next instant three blades sliced entirely through them... and both of them vanished in a shower of smoke. Immediately the samurai were on guard, but their opponents were not attacking, they were quite some distance down the street and moving away. Growling, they broke into a run.

Focusing on the other battle, Sakura realized who was who just in time to see Hinata fall back. Her opponent's spiked gauntlet seemed to have cut through her side slightly. Moving with the motion, Hinata spun a leg at his neck, but he deflected it with a gauntlet. The blow staggered him slightly, but then he exerted force of his own, sending her flying back.

"We'll handle him!" Ino called, getting a better grip on her kunais. "You handle the punks over there!"

"A-alright. He's-"

"I said we'll handle him. Just go!" Hinata nodded hastily and moved further down the street to intercept the charging samurai. They were all muscular and appeared skilled, but she far preferred them to the cat-eyed man. Seeing her, they broke out of their run and halted, hands all on the handles of their blades.

"Get out of the way!" one of them barked. "We don't have time to cut you down now!"

Instead of responding, Hinata attacked. The instant she did so blades flew from their sheaths, but the warrior she had focused on didn't get close. Her hand was around his wrist before it could pull his blade completely, and she hurled him away. She had only a split second to set up a clone before the other two attacked.

Landing on the opposite side of the street, Hinata found that they did not attack immediately; instead, they got into formation.

"You ninja think that you are superior because you have supernatural power," the leader of the samurai grated. "But we are not strangers to mosou." His blade flashed from his sheath, but this time it only moved to rest upright before him, held in both hands. For a moment he closed his eyes, then he opened them abruptly. Flames shot down his blade, and he charged...

-----------------

"So, you'd rather fight me and let the other girl be killed by the samurai?"

"She won't have time to get killed," Ino shot back. "We'll be done with you long before they can finish her. Hinata isn't weak."

"You're about to find out why the shinobi of Hidden Leaf are considered the elite," Sakura added, flipping a kunai to one hand.

"Really?" the other shinobi asked, eyes narrowing. His tongue flickered from his mouth briefly, and he chuckled softly. "You are both very confident. But I must remind you of the cliché: actions speak louder than words." At that moment he dissolved in a shower of blackened rose petals.

Whirling to the side, Ino managed to change a direct blow into a glancing hit. Still, it felt as though something sharp had been scraped along the nerve endings of her arm. Shaking off the pain, she snapped her wrist, hurling a kunai at her opponent. He wove out of the way gracefully and struck faster than she had anticipated-

Sakura attacked from the side, and he only barely brought up a chakra gauntlet before his face. She retreated before he could strike back, and then both female shinobi struck in unison. He turned to the side and avoided Sakura's strike, and took Ino's kunai directly to the hand. It drove part way through the chakra surrounding it and remained stuck. Changing position, she struck at him with the other hand.

This time he grabbed her wrist as it barely passed his face, then used her own momentum to toss her aside. Ino barely managed to land on her feet, fighting off intense pain. Her wrist was bleeding painfully. Then he had an internal style, like Hinata did. That couldn't be any good for Sakura.

Glancing back up, Ino discovered Sakura still fighting, though she was being driven back. Using her good hand, Ino launched several shuriken toward the battle. At the last second the other shinobi brought up a hand. Briefly his chakra gauntlet grew, and it deflected each of the shuriken, which made ringing sounds as they bounced away.

His deflection of the attack gave Sakura the moment she needed to attack. To her surprise, however, he evaded it easily. Then he must have expected it. This guy wasn't a moron, in that case. Expecting his counter strike, she immediately moved. She backed away from his palm, which was flying toward her stomach. Just before reaching her, his range fell short, and then she was skidding away from him-

Chakra flew from his hand in a deceptively gentle sphere that flitted through the air and slammed into her stomach. She hurtled back through the air, lodging part way through the wall of a nearby building. Just as he was moving to finish her off, an army of Ino rushed him from all sides.

Flicking his tongue in mockery, he did not move and let the illusions pass through him harmlessly. Abruptly sensing something behind him, he turned just in time to see Ino's fingers raised in a triangle focused on him. His eyes widened, but then narrowed, his tongue flickering into the air again.

Like lightning he dropped to the side, and Ino's spirit passed through the air harmlessly. She swiftly looked over her shoulder, panicking. Hopefully he wouldn't realize that her body was defenseless- but no, he was already charging it. Pain brought her shooting back to her normal self, but she was already defenseless.

Ending his combo with a backhand to the head, the shinobi sent her hurtling through the air where Sakura had gone. She fell a short distance from the other shinobi. Calmly the enemy shinobi wiped a bit of blood from his mouth and turned toward the two beaten warriors. A slight grin flickered onto his face.

From down the street, Hinata could sense his killing intent. She glanced to the side, distracted from the samurai screaming down toward her with a flaming blade. All that really mattered at the moment was protecting her friends. Raising a hand, Hinata vanished before the blade, appearing before her opponent.

She lashed out quickly, not really intending to do any damage. Both of her blows were blocked by chakra gauntlets, but she stopped his deadly charge. Allowing himself to skid back, the shinobi got on the opposite side of the street. Hinata landed in the center, between him and Ino and Sakura, who were making it to their knees.

"Defending them?" the other shinobi asked. "How quaint. But you don't realize how incredibly futile it is. Even if you could defeat me," he pointed over her shoulder, "they would die."

Hinata didn't need to turn to see the samurai now surrounding Ino and Sakura. Their hands were on their blades, prepared to slash in fatal strokes. On the opposite side of the street, the cat-eyed warrior was likewise focusing, prepared to attack. It was a basic dilemma, she realized. She could only defend herself or save her friends. Either way, she lost. Shivering slightly, Hinata held back tears. Why did she have to deal with this? How could she be expected to make a choice like that?

"That's enough." The voice took everyone off guard, and Hinata looked despite it being unnecessary. All eyes focused down the street, into the early morning mists that floated between buildings. Silhouetted in the mists was a tall figure, a cloak blowing around him. He stepped forward as all could only watch. His cloak was high enough to eclipse the lower half of his face, and over the dark fabric blue eyes glowed intensely, framed by raven locks of hair.

Calmly, Uchiha Sasuke stepped onto the battlefield.

-

Generally, I respond to questions or comments in reviews, when these questions or comments will not be answered by the story itself. These will make more sense in context of said reviews, but it should be possible to read them at face value.

This story is based primarily on the manga (hence Konohamaru's teammates do not technically have names). However, the only real disadvantage those who only watch the anime will have is not being as far along in the story as those who are current with the manga.

I was somewhat surprised that Sakura and Ino were referred to as "overpowered." Rest assured that this is not the case, though I do not wish to impoverish their characters. At this point, not everything about Hinata's style is known; here I will say only that she is not weak and that her character will certainly be developed.

A few valid points were raised concerning Hinata's abilities. Some of these will be answered in chapter 3; all the information regarding jutsus has merely not been given. However, one person asked why she did not use the Jyuuken on her opponent in the first chapter, instead of sealing off his chakra. First, let me point out that quite a few years have passed since the "end" of Naruto, and that Hinata knows both Byukagen based techniques equally well. Sealing off chakra is slightly faster, and also much better to use when you intend to get information out of someone instead of killing them.

Another update will be placed here in two weeks time.


	3. Enter the Sennin

I will note that questions relating to chapter one since the upload of chapter two have been added in chapter two (the second to last paragraph). Questions are answered following the chapter.

-

Chapter Three: Enter the Sennin

There was a long moment of silence as none of the warriors seemed willing to speak. Around them the street was fairly damaged from the battle, and eerily empty. No one stirred, and mists floated soundlessly about everything, almost seeming to confine the battlefield to its own, unnatural world. The new arrival stopped all combat, and the eyes of both sides were upon him. He seemed unwilling to break the silence, merely standing calmly with his arms folded.

"Sasuke-kun!" Ino and Sakura cried at the same instant. Hinata finally let out her breath, not having realized that she had been holding it. The cat-eyed shinobi growled and ceased his attempted attack, throwing the former plan to the winds. This was more important. Abruptly he snapped his fingers once more.

"You! Handle the girls! This one is mine!"

The samurai instantly moved, blades sliding to kill the two wounded shinobi. But Hinata moved in the same moment. She caught two of their wrists and pulled with their strikes, hurling them away. A third blade shot down, but she pushed the flat of it aside with one foot, making it only stab into the concrete beside Sakura harmlessly.

Jerking the blade out and evading her attack, the samurai backed away slightly. The other two were behind her, forming a triangle around her. All of them seemed reluctant to move, cautious but confident in their position. Hinata shivered slightly, then dropped into a fighting position.

-

"I think I know you," the cat-eyed shinobi commented. "You, I really want to fight." The chakra around his arms dissolved. "This should be a good test for my skills."

Sasuke remained silent, his mouth hidden by his collar. His eyes were expressionless. Mists traced their way around both warriors, and neither moved to strike for some time. Abruptly laughing, the other warrior flicked his tongue into the air and smirked.

"You don't realize it, but I already have the upper hand."

"Not really," Sasuke tilted his head to the right just slightly. It was merely a statement, not a taunt. "You can analyze jutsu with your tongue, can't you? I've pushed trails of chakra all about us- your senses are completely worthless now."

"Not bad at all," the other chuckled. "But you're still going to die!" He vanished the next second, appearing behind Sasuke and sweeping down with a large kunai. Swiftly Sasuke caught the arm holding the kunai, and in almost the same motion let it go and drove his elbow back into his opponent's stomach. Blood flew from the shinobi's mouth, and he staggered backward across the street.

"H-how much chakra did you put into that attack?" he gasped, holding his stomach. Sasuke had returned to his standing position, face not having shifted even slightly during the conflict.

"None," he answered simply. "Hinata-san damaged your inner organs earlier... I doubt you can take many more direct blows."

"I should have expected as much," the cat-eyed shinobi laughed. "But if you really think I'm beaten, you have another thing coming. I can see I'll need bigger gauntlets for you." Chakra exploded around his fists, forming massive gauntlets that covered his entire forearms. "Plus, I'm not without my own soft style."

Abruptly his palm shot out, and a sphere of chakra flew through the air as gracefully as a butterfly. It seemed that Sasuke merely stepped to the left, but somehow he glided out of the way of the attack and it passed harmlessly behind him. His hair fell over his eyes, shadowing them completely, but now he glanced up between dark locks. Both of his eyes gleamed red.

"Die already!" the other warrior roared, rushing forward. All he had to do was get a few light touches on his opponent's head and then it would be over. But somehow he found each of his maneuvers anticipated and gently turned aside. No matter how fast or complexly he struck, or how he feinted, his opponent evaded the attacks effortlessly. His assault ended abruptly with Sasuke's palm to his chin.

Flung backward through the air, the shinobi crashed heavily on the street. Immediately Sasuke was attacking, foot intending to break through his opponent. It bit only into the street as his opponent faded away to blackened rose petals. Without blinking Sasuke brought an arm up behind his head, blocking a large gauntlet moving toward his skull.

Like lightening he struck back, fist flying for his opponent. But the other shinobi was prepared for such an attack, and put both gauntlets in the way of it. The fist drove him backward, but did nothing to the gauntlets. Sasuke's kick fared no better, deflecting from the gauntlets harmlessly. Behind his shield, the warrior began to laugh.

At that moment Sasuke's other hand swept over his head. In his palm was collected a dangerous energy, a sphere of crackling blue and black power. Before the other shinobi could think to change his defensive style the hand plunged toward him, chakra flaring. The gauntlets shattered under the overwhelming chakra, which continued on to plunge into the cat-eyed shinobi's chest.

For a fraction of an instant he fell backward without a sound, not apparently damaged. Then abruptly his body was consumed as if by flame, and nothing remained. Briefly Sasuke scanned the area around himself, then his eyes faded to their normal blue and he turned away. On the opposite side of the street, Hinata was still defending Ino and Sakura against the samurai.

Hinata ducked beneath a running swipe, letting her opponent miss and move on past. Another of the samurai swiped at her with sword and fist. She managed to evade the first, but it seemed all she could do was grab his arm on the second strike. He jerked away easily, and backed off in the same motion, mainly because his ally was striking down, aiming to split Hinata in half.

Turning, Hinata caught the blade between two fingers of one hand, and struck with her other. Her open palm moved at her opponent's head, but he jerked away and her fingers only traced over his face. All three samurai returned to their triangular formation, focused entirely upon wearing Hinata down.

"This isn't good," Ino muttered to Sakura. "Hinata-chan can't defend us forever."

"Look!" Sakura said in a taunt voice. Both glanced aside and discovered Sasuke's battle was finished. He was standing a short distance away, his arms folded calmly. The wind was blowing his black cloak about him, though he himself was motionless.

"Sasuke-kun!" Ino called. "Can't you come over here and defend us?"

The three samurai glanced at him, gaze flickering to the dead body of their leader. It was a tribute to their discipline that they remained where they were, though now they seemed completely on the defensive. If he attacked, they weren't sure what they could do...

"I will do nothing," Sasuke told him, voice soft but unyielding. Everyone collectively gasped. "...because my interference is not required. Am I correct, Hinata-san?" His piercing gaze focused on the Hyuga, who shrank back slightly but nodded. "Don't waste any more time."

Startled, the samurai glanced back to Hinata, but too late. She had already raised both hands, and her eyes were closed. They opened abruptly as veins stood out on her forehead, and ripples of chakra expanded from the Byukagen. The green flowing chakra of each of the samurai was immediately evident... along with the blue chakra embedded on their bodies. This chakra exploded at that moment, and all three screamed in agony. In seconds they stopped writhing, and all three lay on the ground around the female shinobi.

"What was that?" Ino breathed, glancing at Hinata. Maybe she hadn't been quite as helpless as she had imagined after all. Nervous with every eye on her, Hinata began fidgeting with her fingers and avoiding eye contact.

"I don't want to have to save you again," Sasuke told them icily. "There are more important things to do here."

"Thank you, Sasuke-kun!" Ino said cheerfully, getting to her feet surprisingly well for someone heavily injured. She began to move toward him, with Sakura in hot pursuit, but he calmly turned away, robes spinning with the motion. He walked directly away from them and faded away into the shifting mists.

"Oooh, he is so cool," Sakura whispered dreamily.

"Still playing hard to get," Ino muttered. Hinata just glanced back and forth between them and then started fidgeting again. The three of them began moving slowly down the street, nursing injuries. At that point the thought occurred to Hinata that their room had been totally destroyed, and she started worrying about where they'd go, but the others had more important things on their minds.

"I wonder how long he was watching before he interfered," Sakura said thoughtfully.

"That's right, he could have been! I wonder if he was impressed by my new body snatching jutsu..."

"As if! You got your ass kicked!"

"So did you!" Ino shot back. The tension between them was almost palpable, and this time it was real. For once Hinata was glad that she was generally ignored; she didn't want to deal with this in any way.

"Too bad he had to show up now," Sakura muttered, turning away forcefully. "I'm all dirty and sweaty and my hair is out of place... at least I'm not bloody like you."

"Your forehead can be seen even with dirt! I wish he hadn't come then, though, I'm hardly at my best. At least I could have been in a decent dress..."

"A hooker dress, you mean."

"Shut _up_!"

-

Back to the wall, Sakura idly flipped her kunai back and forth between her hands. It glittered surprisingly brightly in the moonlight. A chill wind blew one strand of her hair out of place, and she brushed it back absentmindedly. She was supposed to be standing guard, but the scene outside the balcony window was so idyllic that she couldn't help but be entranced by it. Now if only Sasuke would show up now, when things were quiet and she could lean closer to him and-

A soft sound broke into Sakura's fantasy, and her hand snapped around the handle of her kunai. She whirled upon a startled Hinata, who stepped back with a slightly frightened noise. Letting out her breath heavily, Sakura let her kunai slide out of battle position. It was vaguely disturbing how close Hinata had been able to get without being heard, though...

"I-I'm sorry, Sakura-chan," she said softly. "I just couldn't sleep."

"Neither could I," Sakura breathed. "Seeing Sasuke-kun again, after nearly a year..." her voice trailed off and her eyes closed. She showed no sign of finishing her sentence, so Hinata spoke up timidly.

"Sakura-chan? W-why is it that you like Sasuke-kun so much?"

Sakura turned to her, expression incredulous as if she couldn't believe the question had been asked. For a brief moment Hinata began fidgeting before she noticed and forced herself to stop.

"I guess you wouldn't understand," Sakura eventually said, grinning just slightly. "Good old Hinata-chan. I never have to worry about you."

There was a long pause. Swallowing, Hinata made herself speak up again. "That... that didn't exactly answer my question..."

Rolling her eyes, Sakura threw up her hands. "What can I do with you? Who wouldn't want Sasuke-kun? That silky hair, those dreamy eyes, that way he's always scowling... He's just so mysterious and cool, not to mention se-"

An explosion effectively interrupted her in mid-sentence. Several tongues of flame dissipated high in the black sky, and several clashes of metal could be heard. Both Sakura and Hinata started, and it was not long before Ino joined them by the balcony, alert but blinking sleep from her eyes.

"What's going on?" her grim tone was ruined by a partial yawn.

"I'm not sure," Sakura began, but Hinata interrupted her quietly.

"It's a fight," she told the other two. "At least twelve people. They're all moving too fast for me to tell who they are."

"It might be Sasuke-kun!" Sakura exclaimed. Ino didn't bother saying anything, and merely leapt away from the room at full speed. The other two followed quickly, and they sped over the town. Concrete bit hard into Hinata's bare feet, but she ignored the pain. She knew it wasn't Sasuke, but she had a suspicion that this problem concerned them anyway.

The three of them skidded to a halt on street level, finding the battle already over. It had taken place in a broad square, which was now littered with bodies. Much of the street was stained a dark red, and large gouges had been taken out of the concrete. A few nearby businesses had partially broken walls. Standing alone amid the destruction was a single figure, completely untouched by the devastation. Long robes swirled around it softly in the breeze, and it was holding the edge of a broad flat hat that obscured its face entirely.

"A Kage..." Ino whispered. At that moment the figure turned, tilting back its hat to glance at them with shadowed eyes. Abruptly it broke into a broad grin.

"Uzumaki Naruto, at your service!"

-

The plot does not truly begin to unfold until the following chapter. Hopefully, however, this chapter will advance the storyline far enough to be satisfying. This chapter should answer certain questions regard use of Byukagen-linked abilities.


	4. Clarification

I very nearly continued to describe Sasuke's eyes as blue, as that seems to get more people to review than four thousand words of storyline. But ultimately it is irrelevant, so I made the shift for greater accuracy.

-

Chapter Four: Clarification

Putting both hands behind his head, Naruto grinned even broader. This grin did not dissipate when Ino and Sakura stared at him with slack jaws or when his hat fell off the back of his head. Despite herself, Hinata almost giggled.

"What are you doing here?" Sakura finally managed to voice. Slightly nervous, Naruto scratched the back of his head with an uncomfortable laugh and then picked up his hat.

"Didn't you get my message?"

"Yeah, but we didn't expect you to come yourself," Ino pointed out.

"Don't you have jobs to do?" Sakura added.

"Well, yes, strictly speaking, but it's all really boring stuff. So I snuck out; if I go back quickly enough no one will ever notice. Being a Kage is really incredibly dull, when nothing's happening like this. Of course," he coughed into one hand, and his eyes narrowed, "that certainly could change."

"What do you mean?" Sakura asked, one eyebrow rising.

"Something's up, and its something big. Information is pretty scarce. Basically the only people who know are the senior shinobi and all of my special agents."

"You have special agents?" It was Ino's turn to ask.

"Um... I probably shouldn't have mentioned that, but oh well." Naruto grinned at them again, not concerned in the slightest. "I've got a list of our old friends that take the toughest jobs. You know: Neji-kun, Lee-kun, Sasuke-kun -"

"Is that why he was here?" Sakura immediately asked. "Gathering information about this big problem?"

"To make a long story short, yes." Naruto pulled his hat over his eyes. "Is there any other place we could go? This is a bit open, and right now I really can't afford to be handing out information."

"Yeah," Sakura nodded. She turned and vaulted to the nearest building. The rest of them followed her, and again they were flying from rooftop to rooftop, moving back toward the new hotel they had found. Hinata was in the back, and found Naruto side by side with her.

"How's it going?" he asked, grinning sideways at her.

"I-it's alright," she answered. "Not a very relaxing vacation."

"That's true!" he laughed. "I'm afraid it isn't going to get any more relaxing. But really, though, how are you doing?"

For a moment Hinata stumbled, but eventually she managed to tell him she was okay. One moment Naruto's face seemed solemn and contemplative, then he grinned once more.

"Glad to hear it. This your guys' place?"

Indeed, they had reached the balcony, and quickly entered the room. Hinata closed the glass door and pulled the curtains closed behind them. Immediately Naruto slouched back on one of the chairs, at home in an instant.

"Here's the basic rundown. Someone has an awful lot of troops spread out all over Fire Country, and we really don't know who or why. That's why I stationed Sasuke-kun not too far from here, but they attacked before anything important was discovered. Mostly they've been attacking Leaf shinobi on missions, but there were a few visiting from Mist and they nearly got killed.

"Whoever it is, they hire all sorts. I've seen Missing-nin, samurai, shinobi apparently from other villages: the works. To be completely honest with you, I don't know what's going on. Anywho, they're causing a lot of problems, and I've been trying to anticipate their strikes. Kiba-kun got some tip about something going on in Sand, and I need a team to investigate. That's where you all come in."

"What about all those guys you killed?" Ino questioned. Naruto blinked a moment.

"Them? They were more guys coming in your direction. Just punks, really." He frowned and focused on the floor. "It's odd, though. Generally they don't send more than four people after even two shinobi. Why would they send over thirty for the three of you?"

"Maybe they were reinforcements to kill Sasuke-kun," Sakura suggested.

"As if they could do that," Ino muttered scornfully.

"Sasuke is here?" Naruto asked, eyebrows rising in surprise. "Hm; he must have found a reason for moving south. That's good, though. I'll find him and tell him to go with you. Four of you ought to be enough for the job."

At the same moment both Ino and Sakura's inner personalities sniggered evilly, then suspiciously eyed the other. Hinata's inner personality retreated further into a corner, and Naruto's seemed to be looking for something in the fridge.

"It might be best if you guys leave here tomorrow," Naruto told them, rising to his feet. "They don't give up until they lose you, a ton of them die, or you enter a more heavily armed city. You all should heal just fine, and Sasuke-kun'll be there in any case." Abruptly he grinned, wagging his finger at Ino and Sakura. "You two keep away from Sasuke-kun, now. He deserves better." Before they could object he turned to Hinata and gave her a rather forceful hug that left her blushing.

He moved to the door quickly and pushed it aside. When he stepped out onto the balcony, however, he stopped short. Slowly he turned back to face them, his eyes shadowed, his robes fluttering in the night time wind, looking every bit the Hokage. For just a moment his expression was deadly serious.

"Stay focused. Don't trust anyone." His expression became a smirk. "Take care!" With that he vanished entirely, leaving them in an uncomfortable silence.

Ino broke it by crossing her arms and snorting. "The nerve of him. 'He deserves better'? What is that supposed to mean?" Hinata flinched without realizing it. Years ago she would have thought it was really strange for Naruto to say that, but after the massive battle things had changed so much…

"He just has attitude problems," Sakura agreed. "Ever since he became Hokage..."

"Wait," a foreign thought suddenly entered Ino's mind. She glanced over her shoulder. "Hinata-chan, do you still have a crush on him?"

"N-n-no," Hinata managed to answer. It was the truth, but she was vaguely disturbed. Had they been able to tell that easily? Had everyone known but Naruto? "He's still r-really nice, and I think the way he acts is funny, but it isn't... like that." She didn't mention the reason that he was still one of her best friends: he was one of the few people that ever noticed her, one of the few that _wasn't _cruel to her without realizing it. But she wouldn't dare to say that in front of them.

"Good," Sakura nodded. "I was hoping you'd gotten over him by now."

"Now let's get to sleep," Ino interrupted. "I think tomorrow is going to be really busy."

-

When Sakura's eyes flickered open and she saw Sasuke leaning against the wall, she figured that it must be a dream. He was never anywhere vaguely near where she was sleeping except for then, so that was what it had to be. Sleep was just beginning to curl around her again when she remembered Naruto's words.

Abruptly she sat bolt upright in bed, eyes completely open. Sasuke was _supposed_ to be here! Naruto had said something about getting him to come; it wasn't a dream! At the moment Sasuke was looking over his black collar at her intensely. Obviously he had been staring at her in her sleep. She knew there was a romantic side to him somewhere.

-

Yawning, Ino tried to flop back over in her bed. She was a lot more tired than she had thought she was. Standing guard so many nights combined with battles and Naruto's appearance left her fairly drained.

Speaking of Naruto... hadn't he mentioned finding Sasuke? That's right, he was supposed to rejoin them. They were going to be a team, just her and Sasuke... not counting Sakura or Hinata, of course. Almost in her sleep, she smiled slightly; at the moment she loved Naruto for that. This was going to be very interesting.

At that moment a loud noise startled her from her sleep. Ino managed to sit up in time to see Sakura bolt upright in bed. The reason was fairly obvious: Sasuke was casually leaning against the opposite wall, looking as calm and cool as always. He cast a disparaging look at Sakura and then glanced toward Ino. That was a smile! She was sure of it!

-

Two noises broke Hinata from her sleep quite abruptly. For just a moment her muscles tensed and she was about to try and reach for a weapon, but then she remembered where she was and realized the noises weren't dangerous ones. Turning around to sit up, she realized what was going on.

Opposite to the row of beds, Sasuke was against the wall, probably waiting for them to wake up. Sakura and Ino were both sitting up in bed, having apparently just observed his presence. Partially masked by his collar, Sasuke's expression seemed to be a cross between vaguely amused and partially disgusted. Briefly his eyes flickered to Hinata, a mere acknowledgement that she was awake.

Despite getting up second, Ino was the first to attempt to glomp Sasuke. He evaded the effort gracefully, seeming to glide toward the balcony as if he had been intending to do so all along. Sakura was on her feet an instant after, and she and Ino were glaring at each other. Both seemed more focused on keeping the other away from Sasuke than following him.

Nervously Hinata pushed aside the sheets on her bed and stepped out. She refitted her shuriken and kunai cases as quickly as possible and tightened them. Other than that she had taken to sleeping in her uniform, just in case they were attacked during the night. Ino and Sakura hadn't made much progress against each other.

"It's great to see you here!" Sakura beamed.

"Just had to see me again, didn't you?" Ino shoved Sakura slightly.

"The _only_ reason I am here," Sasuke growled, "is because Naruto-san asked me." He still hadn't looked at them, and waited until they stopped trying to speak.

"I've arranged a transport to Wind," Sasuke went on, just barely glancing over his shoulder. The instant he spoke both Ino and Sakura were fixated upon him. "If we run we'll attract attention. Check out of the hotel without drawing any undue attention to yourselves."

"I think Hinata-chan should do it," Sakura suggested. "She doesn't draw very much attention to herself."

"That's a good idea," Ino chimed. "Maybe you should go with her just to make sure everything goes okay."

"Actually," Sakura answered sweetly, "maybe it would be best if you went along instead. This room is in your name, after all."

"I said so first!"

"That doesn't mean anything!"

"Hinata-san will go alone," Sasuke snapped, efficiently cutting off their argument. His gaze brooked no argument, and Hinata merely nodded and scurried to find the room keys. Just before she left the door Sasuke caught her eye. For just a moment his eyes said, so clearly she almost heard it, _hurry_!

Key in hand, Hinata shuffled down the corridor. There was an elevator, but she could probably take the stairs faster by herself. It was still very early, and no one else seemed to be wandering the corridors. Reaching the stairs, she moved down them as quickly as possible without attracting undue attention to herself.

It was very odd that he had "arranged a transport." Her mind kept coming back to that. Ordinarily, shinobi were their own transportation, but this situation obviously seemed different. What could it be that would make traditional movement more stealthy than what a shinobi could normally do? He probably had information that she didn't; she shouldn't have tried to question his decision.

The clerks at the desk were very polite, though they seemed pretty distracted. It was a simple matter to officially check the group out, and Hinata was moving back up the stairs the next instant. She winced imperceptibly each time someone passed her on the stairs. Hopefully she hadn't messed up Sasuke's plans by drawing too much attention to herself.

Entering their room again, Hinata discovered Sasuke leaning against the balcony window. Sakura and Ino were a great deal closer than before, dividing their time between talking to Sasuke and trying to get closer to him without being noticed. The instant Hinata entered, however, Sasuke straightened.

"The coach is out back. We'll jump the balcony, but after that don't do anything unusual or say anything until you get inside," Sasuke ordered. "Take off any armor or weapon cases."

"We're fine," Ino answered, glancing at herself and brushing back a lock of blond hair in the same motion.

"I-I'm sorry," Hinata mumbled, hastily moving to untie the forehead protector from around her neck.

"Geez, Hinata-chan, weren't you thinking?" Sakura asked.

"We're trying to be undercover here," Ino said, sighing and throwing up her hands. Hinata flinched at the criticism.

"How could you go dow-"

"Shut up," Sasuke interrupted sharply. All three of them flinched slightly, but did as he said. By that point Hinata was ready to go, and Sasuke turned.

Like a shifting shadow the four of them were on the balcony. Closing the door behind them, Sasuke then leaped off the edge, the others following closely. They landed silently, Sasuke's cloak shifting back to its normal position. In that instant, Hinata realized how much he looked like Itachi now. His face was different, but the cloak was of the same type, though entirely black. Had he done that on purpose? Why?

In any case, now was not the time to ask such questions, if there ever was such a time. They circled the hotel to where a coach was waiting, as Sasuke had said. Four large furry beasts Hinata wasn't familiar with were yoked at the front of it, stamping and pawing the ground impatiently. Sasuke said something softly into the window of the driver's compartment, and then they all entered the back of the vehicle.

"As soon as we're out of sight of the hotel, draw the curtains," Sasuke ordered. He sat on one side of the coach, his arms crossed. As Ino and Sakura hastened to obey, Hinata sank down on the opposite side as quietly as she could.

When they finished, Sakura and Ino moved to sit on either side of Sasuke, but he glared at them so fiercely that they retreated to the opposite side. Between them, Hinata shrank slightly against herself. There was enough room on the side for all three of them, but she still felt cramped.

Closing his eyes, Sasuke seemed to focus. For a long moment chakra built around him dangerously, but then it subsided. Apparently satisfied, he opened his eyes briefly but then closed them and remained against his own side. The silence that followed was incredibly uncomfortable. Sasuke seemed unaffected, but Ino and Sakura were getting nervous, which made Hinata fidget.

"Are we going to Sand?" Ino finally asked. Sasuke shook his head.

"There is no need. Our destination's name is not important, and I would prefer not to repeat it unnecessarily. It will suffice to say it is a village of little importance."

"Then why are we going there?" Sakura demanded.

"The village does not matter on its own. However, I have reason to believe we will discover something important there."

"What reasons?" Ino asked, not to be out-questioned.

"I have not been idle on my own mission," Sasuke answered simply. His eyes still hadn't opened. "Once there, we will wait to be contacted."

Conversation about the mission over, the coach lapsed into silence once more. Ino began tapping the armrest on her side, eyes fixed on the shut window.

"So what have you been doing?" Sakura broke the silence fairly quickly.

"What would I be doing?" Sasuke asked back.

"Yeah, what would he be doing?" Ino echoed. "Silly Sakura-chan. So much forehead, so little brains."

"You know what I meant! What missions have you been on?"

They continued to argue, but Hinata had stopped listening. Something wasn't right, though she wasn't sure quite what. Subconsciously her hand moved closer to where her kunai pouch should have been. She started thinking about telling Sasuke, but when she looked him he was already sitting stiffly, focused elsewhere. His unusual silence made the others' conversation peter out.

"We're slowing," his voice was taut and barely audible, his eyes now open and intense. "This course is slowly turning... we've been going in a circle for nearly a minute." The others glanced at each other, and Hinata gulped. So that was what it had been. This couldn't be good... "There's chakra outside, being used to enhance speed. Someone is following us.

"Hinata-san," Sasuke addressed her quickly. "Look into the driver's cab. Is there anything unusual going on?"

Nodding meekly, Hinata focused and looked through Sasuke, through the wall and into the space opposite it. The driver was sitting up close to the front, reins held tightly in his fingers. He seemed very tense, but otherwise everything seemed normal.

"Just the driver," she answered, voice even softer than normal. Sasuke nodded.

"Ino-san: take over his body and keep driving along the path without changing speed." She nodded and moved to do so, but he was already moving on. "Sakura-san: when I give the signal, break through into the cab and kill anyone there when Ino has returned to her body." There was a soft tap on the roof, and Sasuke's eyes instantly snapped in its direction. "Now!"

-

When I was originally writing this story, I wrote it without chapter breaks. Hence, I did not intentionally write it so that every chapter would end on a cliffhanger, though in retrospect I find it odd that the first set does so uniformly. Rest assured, however, that I do not intend to do so every single chapter of this story.


	5. Relentless

I apologize for the delay, though it appears that it did not matter in the slightest. As usual, there are some responses (including one to a review of an earlier chapter) following the chapter. This chapter should alsoutilize the site's line feature.

* * *

Chapter Five: Relentless 

At the instant Sasuke's signal was given, everyone moved. It seemed even that their opponents moved when he commanded. Overhead, there was a violent rasp of metal and a surge of dangerous chakra.

Something was whistling toward the coach. With no particular instructions, Hinata merely broke open the nearest door and leapt to the back. Her last sight of the inside of the coach was Sakura breaking through the wall, Ino snapped back to her body and leaping to the side and Sasuke blurring out of existence.

Spinning in midair, Sasuke grabbed the edge of the open door and flipped himself up to the top. Behind him, metallic spikes stabbed through the inside of the coach, ripping apart the cushions easily. He landed at the front end of the coach and remained standing there, the speed-generated wind whipping his clothing around him violently. Hinata had escaped the attack, Sakura was guiding the coach and Ino was with her. With his team safe, Sasuke turned slightly to look to the back of the coach.

"I take it you're the newest assassin," he said flatly, eyes flickering over his opponent. She was tall and had obviously spent a great deal of time worrying about her appearance. He was more concerned about the many weapons she was carrying on her, including oversized _senbon_ that had pierced the coach before. For a moment she just glanced at him, then she almost laughed and shook her long blond hair.

"You look as good as reports said," she commented. The next moment she jerked her hand into the air in a hand seal that jerked thin strings of chakra. Within the coach, the needles whistled to life, flying back out to stab through Sasuke's body. He vanished the next instant, leaving only a scrap of brown cloth from a seat.

Immediately the wind caught it, and it fluttered toward the assassin's face. She snatched it out of the air by reflex, and the embedded chakra immediately flooded through her body. Thousands of tiny stinging sensations enveloped her, nearly paralyzing her body. Metal slashed through her stomach the next instant, and she only barely prevented the blow from being fatal.

Immediately she lashed out, intending to kill her opponent just after he had struck. Faster than she had thought possible Sasuke evaded her attack and then caught her next. With a motion she couldn't quite understand he jerked her arm behind her back, nearly breaking it. She grunted and whipped a weapon into her other hand. Sasuke back stepped to evade her slash and she got her footing on the coach once more.

Surprisingly, the assassin laughed softly, her weapon slack in her hand. "You're good," she admitted. "Better than even what they said about you." Sasuke didn't respond, his eyes shadowed between his hair and his collar. "Listen, I'm not very committed to my superiors, and I doubt you care that much about your village. I know that you abandoned the village once in the past, and it's pretty obvious you don't care about any of the people on this little team you've patched together. Why stick around?" She smirked suggestively. "Come with me and I think we could have a pretty good time."

"Why?" Sasuke's voice seemed unnaturally harsh. The instant he spoke one of his hands exploded in blue flame, chakra collecting around it. His former opponent raised both eyebrows and stepped back. "Why all the time? Why doesn't anything change? Why is everyone always after me?" He finally raised his head, and his eyes were blazing. "It makes me sick." When he said it, it sounded like a death sentence.

"Aw, don't be that way," the other said, cocking her head to the side. "I think I'm a lot bet-" Her voice cut off abruptly in a painful gagging sound. Sasuke's hand had gone through her heart; his arm was now through her body. Blood flew from the wound backward, hitting Sasuke's cloak and seeming to roll off. With an angry growl he ripped his hand out and backhanded the corpse off the edge of the coach. It quickly vanished behind them.

For a brief moment he remained there silently, glancing up into the sky. Then he turned slightly and caught a glimpse of Hinata. She was holding on to the back of the coach, unharmed but apparently frozen in place. Her white eyes were wide, staring at him blankly. Their eyes met, Sasuke's completely emotionless, and then he swept away, dropping to the coach itself.

Hinata remained on the back for some time, unable to make herself think properly. What she had seen still hadn't sunk in. It wasn't the death that bothered her, she had seen far too much of it, but what she had seen in Sasuke. His unnatural calm had broken, and the rage behind it almost terrified her.

The strange thing was, she really wasn't scared of him. He wasn't angry at her, and was controlled almost all of the time. But to know that he was that annoyed, that the things Ino and Sakura and all the others did aggravated him that much... it made her sad more than anything. And his expression… for a brief moment after the battle, his black eyes had seemed disgusted, but she wasn't sure if he was disgusted with others or himself. Shaking off that train of thought, Hinata forced her body to move back into the coach.

It was very different now: one of the doors destroyed, an entire wall gone. Sakura was holding the reigns to the furry beasts, which were trundling on, having apparently noticed nothing. Ino was beside her, whining about something. Sasuke sat on the back bench, his arms out to either side of him. Fidgeting slightly for a moment, Hinata sat on one end of the partially destroyed bench and waited.

"Turn left at the next path," Sasuke said abruptly, voice moving from out of his collar and seeming almost disembodied. "From there, head south until I say otherwise. Stealth is no longer an issue, but it is desirable to arrive in a vaguely normal fashion."

That almost scared her even more. He was speaking exactly like he always did, giving orders tersely and simply. Though he wasn't happy, he certainly didn't seem unhappy. Everything about him seemed completely normal, and she would never have guessed he had any anger within him. Did he live with that every single moment of every day?

"So what was that?" Ino asked, gesturing at the roof. "Some kind of trouble?"

"An assassin," Sasuke answered. "Not an issue of import. Except for one thing... right, Sakura-san?"

"Right!" she grinned. As soon as Ino looked away from her back to Sasuke she stuck her tongue out. "They didn't just have a shinobi, the driver was working for them too."

"But what does that tell us?" Ino asked, glancing between them.

"I wouldn't expect you to get it," Sakura said, patting her arm in a condescending manner. "It says that they aren't just a military power: they have influence with normal people as well."

"It is also likely they have access to confidential records," Sasuke added darkly. "They tracked us here by paperwork, not shinobi skill. Our opponent is highly unusual."

"We'll have to keep up our guard then." Ino nodded sagely.

"Well, duh." Sakura elbowed her in the ribs, and the two glowered at each other once more.

"We don't have time for this," Sasuke stated flatly. For the first time his voice held a hint of urgency. "Our cover has been blown before we truly began. Now, our only objective is to enter Wind Country without being detected by their shinobi. We stay with the coach until we near our destination. Now stop talking."

His command settled over the remainder of the destroyed coach slowly. Ino and Sakura glared at each other viciously, then both stared determinedly forward, not even flickering an eye toward the other. Sasuke's word seemed to be enough to quiet them, however, and their argument ceased, at least verbally. Lowering his head, Sasuke leaned back against the back wall of the coach again and stared toward the floor. Hinata tried to appear as small as possible in her corner.

Try as she might, however, she found Sasuke continually drawing her gaze. For the moment his expression was unguarded, and it spoke volumes. She couldn't understand what he was feeling, but she found herself shivering away from his dark, intense gaze. So terribly stormy...

* * *

Wind flashed past Ino's face, blowing her hair back behind her and fluttering her uniform sharply. As hard as possible she brought her other foot down, driving it into the sand and propelling herself forward in another massive leap. Sand was so terribly hard to run in. It had taken her a while to figure out that to get a good foothold you had to solidify just a bit of chakra beneath your foot before it touched down. After that, things had been easy, or at least easier.

The sand had started creeping in slowly as their journey progressed. Whatever the furry creatures were, they had shown remarkable stamina. Slowly the trees had become fewer and fewer, and the grasses more brown and rougher. Their path dried and withered, and at some point she had blinked and they were moving over sand.

When they made that shift, Sasuke had ordered they abandon the coach. If she calculated correctly, they were already a fair distance inside Wind Country. They'd let the furry creatures lumber stupidly into the forests, then set out running on the sand.

By this point she already hated Wind Country, and hated it with a passion. Everything living and green had faded away behind them rather quickly, and now their journey was over endless dunes, with nothing around them but blue sky. She hated the sand, too, as it seemed to be everywhere and had worked its way all through her dress. Hopefully Sasuke wouldn't notice.

He was currently running at the head of their small v-shaped formation, eyes fixed on some destination, and not watching her. Even if he did, Sakura was obviously just as disheveled by their environment. Sasuke himself seemed untouched; the sand slid off his cloak easily, leaving him as cool and good-looking as always. Hinata was tagging behind them asymmetrically, and was just bearing with all the sand.

At first things had been scorching hot, but after the sun had set the desert had become chilly immensely quickly. In either condition Sasuke kept running, and the others forced themselves to continue. Now Ino found that she was terribly sleepy, despite it not being that late. So much action was finally catching up to her.

Before she could follow the train of thought further, she noticed Sasuke was slowing down. On the horizon was a glowing sparkle of electric light, and it was directly ahead of them. Mentally Ino gave thanks. At least they'd reach civilization before nightfall. By the time they were nearing the small town, Sasuke was merely walking, and they entered at a casual pace.

It was obviously pretty small, as it didn't have a guard wall or anything of the sort. Still, Sasuke had obviously been going for it, so it must have been important somehow. He seemed to be searching for something; his eyes shifted over the street as they moved.

Eventually he turned abruptly to the side and Ino took the opportunity to bump into him. He merely glanced down at her and moved on. They entered a nearby building soon after, still completely silently. It seemed to be a hotel of some sort. Good; she was really looking forward to a hot shower.

"We need rooms," Sasuke said, speaking for the first time in hours. The clerk at the desk jolted and glanced at him incredulously.

"Are you crazy? Do you have any idea how late it is?" He swiveled in his chair and folded his arms at them.

"Money is no object," Sasuke answered him calmly. From his robe he produced a pouch that clanked heavily when he set it on the table.

"Money is not the issue," the clerk insisted, pushing glasses up his nose. "This is a small town, we do not have many rooms. If you arrive this late in the day without a reservation, you cannot expect to get anything comfortable."

"Do you have any rooms? We will make do with what we have."

"I'll check." Grumbling, the clerk shuffled through several papers for a moment. "We only have one. Is that acceptable?"

"There doesn't seem to be an alternative." Sasuke sighed and slipped a hand into the pouch. "Four people. We'll be gone by morning."

"That should come to 5 ryo." The clerk snatched at what he was handed. "Also, a half ryo charge for making me check you in this late."

"Or," Sasuke began, sliding one more onto the table, "you could just skip all the paperwork?"

"Well, I suppose I may as well," the clerk said, eyes narrowing at the money. It vanished into his hand momentarily. "Seeing as it would be so inconvenient." He handed them a dusty key.

"Good." With that word, Sasuke turned, vanishing down the corridor. The three other shinobi followed in his wake, barely keeping up with his long strides. At the very end of the corridor Sasuke turned, glanced at the key, then unlocked the door. Behind it was a modest but clean room.

A modest but clean room with only three beds.

Immediately Hinata began to fidget, eyes fixated on the floor.

Ino let a slight smirk slip onto her face.

Sakura glared at Ino.

Sasuke paused a moment, let out a sigh, then put a hand to his face. "Dammit."

* * *

A different kind of cliffhanger… 

Yes, this Hinata does know about Itachi. According to my version of Naruto history, the final battle with Akatsuki was highly explosive and (later) highly publicized. Hinata did play a minor role in this battle, but basically everyone knows about Sasuke and his brother at this point. But in terms of the actual Naruto manga or anime, no, Hinata has never met Itachi.

I'll also respond to a review of the first chapter by "sakuno:" Assuming that you will at some point read later chapters, you will discover that Hinata is not as weak as she appears. This isn't stated explicitly, but it should become obvious that of the four core shinobi she is second only to Sasuke, which doesn't mean a lot.


	6. Collaboration

There are three responses following the chapter, the first of them fairly important.

* * *

Chapter Six: Collaboration

"Well, it seems that we have a little problem," Sakura mused aloud. "Four of us, only three beds."

"Yes, _quite_ the problem," Ino agreed, shooting her a venomous sideways glance. "Evidently someone is going to have to share."

"There are only six different combinations," Sakura figured quickly, a slight smirk on her face. "I guess we'll just have to decide."

"I think I'd be willing to sacrifice for the team and share, if Sasuke-kun doesn't mind."

"Actually, I think I might be the better choice, because we've worked on the same team before. Who knows what _you_ might do."

"Me? What about you?"

"Um," Hinata interrupted, hands clasped in her sleeves, looking away. "I could sleep on the floor..." She was immediately glared into silence by Ino and Sakura. Before they could continue arguing, however, Sasuke walked past all of them to stand beside the first bed and they immediately pursued.

With unusual speed Sasuke turned, hand clamping onto Sakura's shoulder. Their gazes locked and then Sakura fell forward, flopping onto the bed and laying still. Sasuke idly pushed her into a better sleeping position with one foot, then turned toward the opposite wall just slightly, his hair shadowing his eyes.

"Ino-san... come here."

"Who, me?" she asked, somewhat flustered and almost blushing.

"Who do you think I'm talking to?"

She lost little time in getting to Sasuke, and he turned toward her. In an instant they were face to face, almost touching, so close... and then Ino fell backward, only barely avoiding smacking her head on the floor because Sasuke grabbed the back of her shirt.

The next instant his eyes snapped to Hinata, both of them blazing red, his pupils expanded to dark, three-pointed shuriken. She gasped and shrank back slightly. For a moment neither spoke; Hinata found herself unharmed but unable to move. Slowly Sasuke's eyes faded to their normal black.

Turning away as if nothing at all unusual had happened, he dropped Ino onto the bed next to Sakura as if she weighed nothing. His work done, he slipped across the room to the furthest bed and began removing weapons from his cloak. Fidgeting again, Hinata made her way to the middle bed.

"Th-thank you, Sasuke-sama."

He froze for just a moment, looking away from her. Then he nodded curtly, "Good night."

* * *

Groggily Ino tried to make her eyes open. And failed pretty miserably. She must have slept like a rock, but at the moment she felt so incredibly sluggish. What exactly had happened last night? They had arrived, yes, and gotten a room... what after that? Abruptly the beds situation returned to her and she smiled just slightly.

Something unimportant that happened, and then she had been so near Sasuke. At that point everything dissolved into a whirl of color and fractured memory. Had...? Still feeling sleepy, she subconsciously stretched. Her hand brushed someone's skin...

At that moment Sakura screamed, leaping to the side awkwardly. The noise made Ino fly awake, her eyes shooting open. For a long moment the two of them just stared at each other, then both made a gagging noise and turned away.

When both had recovered, they took better stock of their surroundings. Both of the other beds were empty, and Sasuke was sitting in a chair beside the doorway; it was possible there was a smirk on his face but it couldn't be seen. Something vaguely seemed to come back to Ino, something about him, but it faded. It probably wasn't important, then.

"Good morning, Sasuke-kun!"

He didn't respond with more than the slightest of nods.

"Where's Hinata-chan?" Sakura wondered, noticing their comrade's absence for the first time.

"Bathing," Sasuke told her, flicking a finger in the direction of the bathroom. "As soon as she's done, we're leaving."

"But, aren't you going to get cleaned up too?" Ino tried.

"I did. Two hours ago."

"You mean we won't even be able to wash our hair?" Sakura demanded, shocked at the prospect.

"If you hadn't slept in, you could have. We have a schedule to keep." Before Sasuke could say any more, Hinata emerged from the bathroom. Her uniform was no longer dusty and her hair was damp. She drew back slightly with all eyes upon her, but Sasuke rose to his feet and slid toward the door before any words could be said.

"Arm yourselves," he told them over his shoulder as he locked the door. "We might run into trouble from this point on."

They checked out of the hotel easily and were soon in the streets. Things were fairly crowded, and Sakura realized that it was probably closer to noon than to six. These crowds were by large average people, though they certainly looked strange. All of them were wearing head coverings and primarily white clothing. There didn't seem to be many shinobi among them. Probably just a normal city then.

Weaving toward some unknown location, they quickly vanished within the throngs. Slowly the crowd around them began to thin as they moved to a portion of the town that seemed to be better kept up. A few people were on the streets, all of them dressed in much more stylish robes. Some even caught Sakura's eye. If they had to stay here for a while, she had have to consider some shopping.

Eventually they began walking along the side of one street, Sasuke's eyes flickering across the signs on each building. Just as he began to slow down, chakra fluttered around them. With a woosh of dry air, several shinobi came into being. All of them were cloaked entirely in shapeless desert mottled robes and wore brown masks. They were effectively in a circle around the other shinobi.

"What are you doing here?" the one facing Sasuke demanded. "It is in violation of the treaty of nations to send a military force into the Country of Wind."

"We are none of your concern," Sasuke returned. "This is business relating directly to Hidden Sand, and the laws of the Country of Wind are inapplicable."

"If you do not come with us peacefully, we will have to use force. It is yo-"

"Oh, lay off it." A new voice entered the conversation. All the Sand shinobi's masks whipped around to face the new arrival. Sasuke merely glanced in the direction calmly. "What are you trying to prove, anyway, Synan-kohai? Go do your job."

The person who had intruded upon the conversation was standing at the edge of the street, leaning calmly against the wall with one hand. She was dressed primarily in dark shades of clothing, an efficient yet stylish outfit. Her spiky blond hair was tied behind her. It was immediately obvious from her weaponry that she was a shinobi, but Sakura didn't think she recognized her from anywhere.

"Temari-san." Sasuke inclined his head slightly in respect. Sakura blinked; she hadn't recognized Temari without her fan. For a moment Temari smiled, but then she returned to glowering at the masked shinobi.

"You. Go. I called them here."

"As you wish," Synan responded stiffly. As one, the Hidden Sand Anbu raised one hand to just before their masks and vanished in a shower of sand. Temari glanced after him with a slightly disgusted look, then dismissed him mentally as she glanced back at the Leaf shinobi.

"Ignore him. He talks big, but he's mostly just a frustrated bastard."

"I take it you were my contact, then?" Sasuke asked, glancing down at Temari. She nodded.

"Yeah; we managed to make the right connections to get you here. I'm glad you came so quickly." Her gaze wandered toward the sky vaguely. "Things... aren't exactly as good as they could be."

"Then we have a lot to talk about."

"Right," Temari agreed, jerking open the restaurant door and gesturing them toward it. "Let's go inside before anything else."

The restaurant was a desolate place, filled with empty chairs and tables. Even the staff seemed to tiptoe about in the shadows, and could very well go unnoticed. Because everything was so empty, the one person in the room stood out all the more. He was facing away from them at a table, leaning back on two legs of his chair, head back as if sleeping. Leaning against the nearest chair was a massive black rectangle that Sakura's immediately recognized as Temari's fan.

Hearing them enter, the occupant of the chair glanced at them over one shoulder. He grunted and brought his chair back down on all four legs. The motion was so characteristic that Ino recognized him instantly.

"Shikamaru-kun! What are you doing here?"

"Not a lot," he answered dryly. "It's very depressing."

Old friends crowded around the table, and soon six chairs were pulled around it. Temari took her place beside Shikamaru again, and Sasuke claimed the opposite side of him wordlessly. There was a slight pause, as no one was completely sure what to say.

"What business do Jounin of the Hidden Sand have with Konoha?" Sasuke began the conversation starkly. He received three immediate responses.

"Don't be so serious, Sasuke-kun!" Sakura admonished. "Let us talk a while."

"None," Temari told him brightly.

"A bunch of people who just happen to be in a certain country just happen to have something to discuss with another bunch of people who just happen to be from another country." Shikamaru threw an arm over the back of his chair lazily. "Pure coincidence."

"I see." Sasuke's eyes narrowed. He didn't seem ready to say anything immediately, so Sakura took it as a chance to ask questions of her own.

"How long has it been?" she asked, shaking her head. Years...

"Eleven years," Shikamaru answered easily.

"Do you regret leaving Hidden Leaf?" Ino asked.

"Not really," Shikamaru yawned. "The people in Hidden Sand let me in as a Jounin with out any real work. Deal with the Kage, you know. Why, did you miss me?"

"Not a bit. We're better off without a lazy bum like you."

"Ah. You're a bigger annoyance than I remembered." Putting his hands behind his head, Shikamaru leaned back in his chair again. "How are things doing back home now? I can't really get much news here."

"I'm a Jounin and I lead the Western Anbu Division, at least most of the time," Ino informed him proudly.

Shikamaru just grunted. "I hear that's a real pain."

"I'm a Jounin special agent," Sakura said, shooting a glance at both Ino and Sasuke.

"I-I'm a Chuunin," Hinata offered weakly. There was a nervous silence following her words.

"You already know the military position of the city," Sasuke stated. "Otherwise, very little has changed. Naruto-san is Hokage now. All of our generation has dispersed throughout the world, but we haven't had any casualties yet."

"Yeah, times have changed." Shikamaru smiled slightly, gazing into the light in the ceiling above them. "Not like old times at all, is it? No more cells, no more exams. It's funny how everything that once seemed so constant eventually shifts. People don't change as much, it seems..."

"What about you?" Sakura asked. "What all have you done?"

"Well, like I said, I'm a Jounin now. They run things basically the same way here, missions and the like. I do mostly A Level missions."

"Only if he can't get out of them," Temari interrupted with a slight smirk. "If we let him he'd never do any actual work."

"Lies, slander, libel," Shikamaru protested without any real effort. "But other than that, I've been developing shadow jutsu more suited to the desert, and eating here whenever I can. It's a good place, but only shinobi really go here. Otherwise-" he inclined his head toward Temari.

"So, are the two of you...?" Ino tapped her fingers together.

"You'd better believe it," Temari answered.

"If we're all done being nostalgic," Sasuke spoke up, "perhaps we could focus on the original intent of this meeting?"

"That'll be a real hassle," Shikamaru sighed. "I have to go to the bathroom. Temari... don't kill anyone until I come back." She merely grinned in response. He dropped back to four chair legs and slouched from the room. Sasuke's gaze flickered to him, then to Temari, and then he stood.

"So do I." He vanished a moment later.

"So," Sakura said, the moment they were gone. "What's this all about?"

"I'm not going to start on anything until they get back," Temari said firmly. "There's no need to say this twice. You've already been attacked, right? How much?"

"Right," Ino confirmed. "They've tried three times."

"Four times," Sakura corrected. "Naruto stopped one group before they reached us."

"Whatever."

"By this point, you probably don't have to worry much more," Temari told them. "Give Shikamaru-kun the details when he gets back."

"Excuse me for asking," Ino said, voice not indicating she wanted to be excused in any way, "but what is it like being married to Shikamaru-kun? I mean, I was on his team for several years, and..." she ended her sentence with a shudder.

"It's nice," Temari answered with a smirk. "He isn't as lazy as he seems, and when the thought occurs to him he's a really sensitive guy. Brilliant fighter, too. One of, oh, four people in this country that can give me a decent workout. What about you? You aren't still chasing Sasuke, are you?"

There was an uncomfortable pause, in which Ino and Sakura glanced at each other. Hinata gulped and was about to force herself to answer the question when Temari went on, not worried in the slightest.

"Because it looks to me like he isn't interested in being caught."

"Hey now!" Ino flipped back a lock of hair in an annoyed fashion. "You liked him once too!"

"And I grew up and got over it," Temari told her pointedly. "He seems to have gotten a lot stronger. In all honesty, I doubt I could beat him. Still as cold as he was four years ago, too."

"Well of course," Sakura insisted.

"What about you, Hinata-san?" Temari asked, ignoring Sakura completely.

"Um, uh," Hinata panicked at being directly addressed. Temari really scared her. Not like Ino or Sakura, but because she was so aggressive. To her surprise, the other female shinobi gave her a rather encouraging smile. "I'm re-really not thinking about that right now."

"That's probably for the best," Temari nodded. At that moment Shikamaru and Sasuke returned, sitting down without comment. "Ready to get started?"

"No need to delay the inevitable," Shikamaru grunted. "Go ahead."

"I'll fill you in as quickly as possible," Temari told them. "You've been attacked four times. That's fairly usual. It seems that all over the world Leaf shinobi," her gaze flickered to Sasuke, "have been being attacked. There are always multiple assassins, and they seem capable of reaching anyone, anywhere. They've attacked even academy students without pause. These assassins are very unusual-"

"Unusual in that they seem to come from different schools of fighting?" Sasuke asked. "We've seen shinobi from a variety of nations, samurai, thugs without training, and a few without a particular style."

"I hadn't heard about any samurai," Temari admitted, "but you have exactly the right idea. All this has led us to believe that whoever is behind this is working alone, not allied with any nation or Village. The group seems very widespread and capable of striking anywhere. Furthermore, they have resources not generally accessible by most shinobi." Idly Shikamaru pulled a pen from his pocket and began drawing on his napkin.

"But who are they?" Sakura asked. "What do they want?"

"That we don't know."

"It almost seems like someone outside of shinobi politics entirely," Sasuke pointed out. "They don't seem to have any ties at all."

"But that's what makes this all so difficult," Temari returned. "If that's the case, what draws these people together? There doesn't seem to be anything in common between them, except for their attacks."

"How much do we know about the attacks in general?" Sasuke asked, raising an eyebrow.

"We've been collecting information, purely for our own purposes," Temari told him. "But we aren't very connected to the problem. Perhaps Konoha, being more centrally located, would be able to-"

"Here." Sasuke placed a scroll onto the table. "I thought you might want that. This is a compilation of the attacks that we know of."

"Glad to hear it." With a grin, Temari produced a similar scroll. After rolling both out, she began peering over both of them. Hinata noticed that Sasuke was in an unusually good mood, for him, anyway. She couldn't see his mouth, and he probably wasn't smiling, but from his eyes she knew he was enjoying this. That changed what she had thought earlier; some people he did enjoy being with.

"What about you?" Shikamaru glanced up at them. "What forces attacked you?"

"Well..." Ino began listing off on her fingers. "There were two average shinobi and two weak ones the first time. On the way here there was a shinobi... I don't know how strong they were. Sasuke?"

"Average," Sasuke answered flatly. "They also had an ordinary person as an accomplice."

"Anyway, then there was a really strong shinobi - Sasuke beat him! - and three samurai-like guys. After that, a pretty big group of thugs, but I didn't ever count them. I think that's abou- are you even listening to me?"

"Hm?" Shikamaru glanced up from his doodling on his napkin. "Oh, sure; I'm listening."

Ino frowned reprovingly at him, but Sakura had one hand to her chin in thought. "Who'd be capable of this sort of thing, though? And how can they attack such a broad range? It'd be ridiculous to assume that these are not coordinated, but that implies that there is someone to do the coordinating."

Not to be outdone, Ino provided a commentary of her own. "I think we can assume that we're dealing with some sort of crime lord with a great deal of money. Now, I don't know why he thinks he can take down one of the greatest military forces in the world, but evidently he's going to try. So far it seems they've only met with failure, or- Shikamaru-san! What makes your napkin so incredibly interesting?"

"Oh, just doodling," he answered, flipping his pen between his fingers idly. He dropped the napkin on the center of the table; on it was drawn a crude map. "I compiled all the attacks, and estimated their origins and strength, as well as the resources required to assemble them. From that, I tried to determine the point most able to launch that many attacks. It seems to be... well, in the northern hemisphere. Can't expect much; it was on a napkin, and my pen sucks."

"Try this." Temari shuffled through a few scrolls in her pack and produced one. When spread it was a full map of the planet.

"Gah; now I have to do all that again," Shikamaru groaned. As he did so, however, he was producing a pencil and a compass. Temari stood behind him to get a better view of the map.

Eyes narrowing, Sasuke leaned closer to the map, examining Shikamaru's work and the collective lists. "Are you considering that they might have several branches from which to formulate attacks?"

"More or less," Shikamaru nodded, carefully inscribing an arc. "A lot of that part is guesswork. I really doubt we'll get much closer than ten kilometers or so."

"Add Kankuro-kun's attack," Temari spoke over his shoulder. "Two Mist Chuunin, along the 79th parallel."

"Hm. Thanks." Shikamaru continued working. The other three at the table sat in somewhat stunned silence. Sakura could follow everything he did, but was never able to anticipate his next move. She did have a good enough sense of the data to know it seemed to be closing in on one specific point. Ino just tried to look as if she knew what she was doing and Hinata fidgeted in awe.

Abruptly Shikamaru dropped the pencil onto the map and fell back into his chair heavily. "Man..."

"So... a large city in Earth Country called Erafin." Sasuke's finger traced over the map. "I'm guessing our margin of error is relatively low: there is very little around that city."

"Not that one city of that size is easy to search," Temari pointed out. Sasuke nodded absentmindedly, eyes focused on the map.

"Well..." Sakura spoke up when no one else seemed ready to, "what are we going to do now? Make war on the city?"

"Inefficient," Temari dismissed the idea immediately. "They would get word of the attack long before it happened. Far better to make a specific strike."

"If they've really given up on killing us," Ino mused, "then perhaps we could slip inside, determine the problem and get rid of it."

"That's more or less what I was thinking," Shikamaru agreed. "It'll save me a lot of trouble."

"I don't suppose I could persuade you to come with us?" Sasuke asked.

"Nope. I'm not very motivated, and I've done my part. But... good luck, guys."

Sasuke merely nodded; the expression on his face was hidden and his eyes spoke of nothing. The rest of his impromptu team got to their feet as well, sensing the urgency that had descended upon them. All of them left swiftly, pausing at the door of the restaurant.

"Move full speed out of the city," Temari told them. "I'll make sure none of our Anbu bother you." She grinned. "I really enjoyed seeing some of you again."

"Yes. Perhaps if all goes well I should return," Sasuke answered, eyes shadowed. "Farewell."

With that he burst off the ground, hurtling into the sky. For a moment he was suspended in the air, and then he landed on a nearby rooftop and shot forward in a dead sprint. Ino and Sakura both leapt after him at the same time. Hinata waved timidly, and received a cheerful and a lazy wave back, then followed them.

It was only a matter of a minute before they were out of the city, running across the sand once again. By this time she had caught up to them, and the entire group was moving in a fairly tight bunch. Sakura sped up just slightly to be even with Sasuke.

"How are we getting to Earth Country?" she called as well as can be done while running.

"Run."

"But surely we'll stop at times. That's half-way across the entire globe!" Ino pulled up beside Sasuke as well.

"Whenever it is necessary," Sasuke answered darkly.

"But where will we stop?" Ino pressed. "Can we find a city with a decent hotel? I really need a shower."

"We will avoid civilization," Sasuke told her grimly. "There is no need to draw attention to ourselves."

"Aw, but-"

"No."

As they continued on in silence, Hinata winced slightly. So quickly... Sasuke was already completely alone again. While they had been talking to Shikamaru and Temari, he had at least been enjoying the company, but now he seemed so somber and dark. At one time she had thought that he just didn't like people, but she realized she needed to amend that statement: he simply didn't like certain types of people. She hated to see him so unhappy...

Sand behind them, sand before them, the shinobi continued to sprint toward their destination.

* * *

You are correct, Sakura and Ino are more shallow than their manga (or anime, I would imagine) counterparts. I didn't intend to do this, but part of the theme of the story is to contrast that which is static and that which is changing; this fundamentally moved the story to minimalize their characters. However, you are not the first to observe one of the results of this, and I similarly feel their lack of depth is one of this piece's greatest weaknesses. Rest assured that I develop them to a certain degree in any case, and I am seriously considering rewriting some later chapters to hopefully improve upon this.

No, Kesshin; those similarities may be interesting, but Nalome is quite distinct from Sasuke. If he was based on anyone, it would be Orochimaru, and an entirely different factor that has yet to fully come into play. But you weren't serious in the first place, so there is little need to tangent.

Heh. Thank you for the "limited feedback."


	7. Turning in His Grave

Completely imaginary, worthless and utterly meaningless cookies to anyone who knows why this chapter is titled as it is.

Also, this chapter is not as direct as previous chapters, but I believe that it advances the plot none the less.

* * *

Chapter Seven: Turning in his Grave

Dust passed them by, drifting along the winds aimlessly. Moving at a relaxed pace, Shikamaru continued down the street. Things were so empty in this part of town. It was nice, really. Of course, there was a good reason things were empty, but he preferred not to think about that. Why complicate an essentially good thing?

Temari moved beside him at a similar pace, eyes on the ground. Slowly and subtly she edged over, pushing him toward the wall. Nothing he couldn't see coming light-years away, but she didn't particularly need to do anything of the sort. Eventually she turned and calmly pinned him to the wall. He went along with it amiably.

"You know they're there, right?"

"Yeah, yeah..."

"It's only a matter of time," she whispered just over his shoulder. "We might as well strike first. The usual."

"Ah, but that'd be such a bother..."

"Shikamaruuu..."

"Alright, alright." Surging chakra into his feet, he launched himself into the air just as his wife skidded backward into the street. From the nearby rooftops the hidden attackers realized their presence was discovered and rushed to attack. At least twelve, Temari noted, three or four of them with perhaps some skill. Better than last time.

Their shuriken rained toward her, and she calmly deflected them with her fan without opening it. The majority of them were building on one side of the street opposite her, apparently aiming to attack in conjunction. She snapped her fan out behind her, making them pause. That was all that was necessary; she didn't need to attack... yet.

Abruptly they realized that Shikamaru was suspended in midair between the groups, hands flying through hand seals. His shadow on the ground shattered, flying into dozens of separate jagged pieces. Still in midair, Shikamaru slapped his hands together a final time. Each of the shadows burst into the air and in three dimensions, at exactly the same moment Temari whipped her fan before her.

A flood of chakra built shuriken was upon the warriors before they completely knew what was happening. Most of them fell backward, dead or dying, as Shikamaru landed lightly on the street. Two of the warriors had weathered the blast, and one of them managed to replace himself with a clone.

When two of them dove at Shikamaru from opposite directions, he merely yawned. Midway through the motion his hand lowered into a hand seal, even as they hurled several kunai in his direction. His shadow behind him abruptly split into two columns. They snapped around the legs of both his opponents, binding them in place. When his shadow converged with the flickering shadows of the shuriken, they stopped in midair.

Calmly Temari ducked, avoiding the kick she had fully expected from behind. She whirled to strike with a full wind blast, but her opponent recovered before she could get it off. His other foot knocked the fan away from her, out of her reach. Smirking, he moved in for the kill.

One of Temari's hands whipped up. A fierce burst of wind moved in conjunction with it, extending beyond her hand and to her opponent. Abruptly the arm he had intended to attack with was disconnected, falling to the ground bloodily. Crying out in pain, the shinobi grabbed at his shoulder. The next instant his eyes tightened, and his cloak expanded from him, revealing dozens of exploding notes. In one moment his chakra would-

Temari's hand struck the side of his neck, and he collapsed instantly. She turned away from him without a second glance in time to see Shikamaru end his part of the battle. His kick sent one of the warriors hurtling back as his shadow jutsu briefly applied fatal pressure to the other. Both of his opponents fell away and generated clouds of dust when they hit the ground.

"Theoretically they're supposed to give up after this attack," Shikamaru commented idly, scuffing one of his sandals on the road. "Such a waste of time."

"With any luck, Sasuke-san and company will put an end to this," Temari added, walking to stand beside him.

"Yes... I hope they can." While brooding, Shikamaru absentmindedly kicked her fan up, catching it with one hand and giving it back to her. She strapped it on her back once more and they continued down the street.

"We've done what we can; it isn't our problem now," she said somberly, then grinned. "Let's go, we have more important things to do."

* * *

The campfire was noisy, as it usually was. Truthfully speaking, it was not the campfire that was noisy, but the people sitting around it. There were three of them there, all of them in their early teens. Most of the noise was coming from the two of them, who were arguing animatedly across the fire.

"No way. There's no way they'd ever let you be an Anbu!"

"How can you say that, Hilsoth-kun?" the other boy demanded. "They let you in, didn't they?"

"They let me in because I'm good! You, on the other hand, aren't fit to lick an Anbu's boots!" He stuck his tongue out at his partner, Faunus, and sat back with his arms folded.

"You're an Anbu, and I'm fit to kick your butt," Faunus shot back. "The instant we get back to the village, I'm applying for the position. Then you won't be able to order me around anymore, will you?"

Their partner didn't say anything, nervously looking between them. She was a small girl about their age, with long blond hair and pretty yellow eyes. This was just like them, to be arguing all the time. They were on a mission, but it was pretty low level, so they weren't taking it very seriously. Her healing skills probably wouldn't even be needed tonight.

"Listen," Hilsoth was shouting at the moment, "just because your dad was a hero doesn't mean-" His voice faded away as he saw the anguished expression on his partner's face. The other boy's eyes flashed angrily, and he turned away, facing the shadows. For a moment Hilsoth reached after him, then he tightened his fist and pulled it back.

"Hilsoth-san," the girl spoke up softly. "That wasn't fair."

"I know, Liana-chan," he sighed, and shook his head. "Sometimes he just makes me so... frustrated, I..." Wearily he got up and moved somewhat around the campfire. "Faunus... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring your father up."

"Then don't in the future," Faunus told him coldly. He did, however, turn back slightly. "I'm still gonna make Jounin before you do."

"Sure you will! I-" Abruptly their fire was quenched, plunging them into darkness. Something black dropped from above, and two silver blades flashed in the starlight. Faunus and Hilsoth both wove away from them on instinct. Their eyes began to adjust almost immediately, and they saw a warrior wielding two blades in the center of the camp. Liana had crumpled back on the ground, but she seemed mostly unhurt.

Their attacker struck almost instantly, rushing at Faunus. He managed to duck the first slash, and jerked his head to the left to evade the other stabbing blade. Immediately he lashed out, making his opponent stumble back slightly, but the warrior recovered quickly and hit back, bashing him across the face. As he fell, the assassin raised his blades and-

A whip of chakra snapped around his wrists before he could strike. One hand in a seal, the other holding the end of the whip, Hilsoth jerked their opponent off his feet and into the air. Back on his feet, Faunus hurled a kunai at him. It struck, though slightly off its mark, and the warrior lost his grip on his blade.

With startling agility, the assassin managed to slip out of the chakra whip before he smashed into the ground, instead leaping away. He landed at the campfire, facing off with them now without his blades. Faunus had his hands up in a seal, and Hilsoth was spinning his whip about himself with a slight grin. The enemy shinobi turned and ran. Liana gave a slight cry before he grabbed her and leaped into the air.

"No!" Faunus cried, finishing another seal. His eyes blazed like molten lava, and a beam of chakra exploded from him. It barely whizzed over Liana's shoulder, piercing her kidnapper through the heart. Both of them crashed to the ground, but Hilsoth moved beneath Liana and caught her neatly.

"Now who could that have been?" Hilsoth wondered, setting his partner down gently.

"Whoever he was, he sure hit hard," Faunus muttered. "I think this is going to bruise."

"Oh! Let me see that." Liana hastened over to him and examined the injury. "It isn't a critical injury, though it would probably hurt pretty badly. I should be able to fix it." Her hands began to hum with energy as she built her healing jutsu. She gently touched a finger to the bruise, and it vanished in a soft glow.

"Thanks." Faunus nodded to her, then glanced to Hilsoth. "Do you think we should report this, or finish up our mission first?"

"It isn't too hard," he answered. "We should be able to hurry through it and then report back without any difficulty."

At just that moment four dark forms dropped from above, blades slashing. All three shinobi managed to throw themselves out of the way of the blows, but the new set of attackers was already following up. A palm struck Faunus in the chest, and he hurtled backward. In midair he managed to regain control of himself, only to be grabbed from behind by another of the enemy shinobi.

Liana shrank back from the battle, even as Hilsoth began lashing out on either side of him with two whips. One of the shinobi was knocked into the air by it, but another caught the chakra whip in one hand, then rushed forward and grabbed Hilsoth's neck. For a moment he struggled, then he collapsed to the ground limply.

The sword sang through the air, cutting a gash across Faunus's chest. He cried out, and flames began shooting wildly from his eyes. Several of the shinobi were blasted backward, and Faunus wrenched himself from his opponent's grasp. Whirling, he tackled his opponent to the ground.

There was a scuffle, then a pause. Moments later, the shinobi in black rose to his feet, then glanced back at the camp darkly. The other three emerged from the trees, smoking but still alive. Liana was trapped between the four of them, and her gaze flickered between them swiftly as she shrank down to the ground.

"Hey," one of the assassins asked, speaking over her head to his partners. "Do orders say anything about what we have to do to our targets?"

"Only that we eventually kill them," his partner answered. "I think we have free reign other than that."

"Good," the third smirked. He reached forward and grabbed Liana's wrist. "I was thinking-"

Abruptly she smiled at him, and a wave of electricity coursed through his body. For a moment he writhed in the air, mouth open in a wordless scream, then he collapsed to the ground, blackened skin smoking faintly. Cursing, the other three shinobi attacked.

The first struck at Liana in a broad horizontal swipe, and a blade of electricity exploded from her hand to deflect it. He managed to pull his blade away with only a slight jolt, but she was already making a one-handed seal with her other hand. Her blade snaked out, curving around him. It jerked his lifeless body over her head, making him collide with the shinobi attacking from behind.

As both of them crashed backward, Liana whirled just as the last of the shinobi attacked from the side. Her fingernails extended swiftly, each of them tipped by a clear liquid. She jabbed her hand into the side of the attacking shinobi. His attack halted almost instantly; for a moment he remained on his feet, gagging, then he collapsed to the ground.

Tossing aside the body of his partner, the remaining attacker flipped back to his feet. Both of his hands were gloved, and long claws shot from these gloves as he dropped into a fighting stance. With a slight roar he charged on the girl, who did not move until he was almost upon her, hands frozen in a seal.

"Tsa!" she cried, splaying her fingers directly before his face. He stumbled and fell back, clutching his eyes, which were now a solid black color and could see nothing. Before he could go far, Liana attacked, her foot lashing out and splintering his shin. As he fell forward she backhanded him to a horizontal position before her and then drove her knee up into his spine. When he dropped to the ground he did not move.

* * *

Twenty minutes later the team was investigated due to chakra signs that resembled a battle that had been emitted from their direction. The Anbu found the three of the shinobi still alive at their camp, five bodies lying about them, numerous weapons scattered about.

"How are they, Liana-chan?" one of the Anbu asked, flipping up his mask to glance down at the small medical shinobi sitting meekly on a log.

"Hilsoth has a minor concussion that should heal completely," she told him softly. "I couldn't heal the wound on Faunus's chest right here, but back at the village it should be fine."

"Glad to hear it. I guess we should count ourselves lucky that they didn't hurt you."

"Yeah," she answered, smiling nervously. "Pretty lucky."

* * *

The morning wind blew a few stray leaves across the ground. It briefly curled around his legs, toyed with his cloak and then swept on. Sasuke's eyes were closed, as he took a moment to merely listen to the sounds of the beginning day. More accurately, the lack of sounds. Everything was silent and still... peaceful. With a slight sigh he turned back to the camp.

Ashes remained where their fire had long since burned out. Ino and Sakura lay on opposite sides of it, sprawled between their blankets, hair falling over their faces. Hinata lay to one side on her stomach, arms curled beneath her. He was going to regret this, he knew, but it was necessary.

Walking beside Sakura, he gently kicked her. She woke up groggily, mumbling something incomprehensible, but Sasuke was already jabbing Ino awake. For a moment she sat up and yawned in a most unladylike fashion before abruptly seeing Sasuke and cutting off awkwardly. Ignoring her, Sasuke moved to wake Hinata, but discovered that she was already rousing herself.

"We have a long way to go," Sasuke announced. "Along the way, we're going to train. Though we may be strong enough on our own, we aren't really a team. When we arrive, we need to be ready."

"Training?" Ino groaned. "We're going to _train_?"

"Do you think you're above it?" Sasuke asked, tilting his head back and looking down at her. She quickly hastened to answer, and Sakura snickered at her, but he was moving on before they could speak. "To that end, I need to know what you're capable of. For now, all three of you are going to fight me."

"All three of us?" Sakura asked incredulously. This time it was her turn to receive a cold stare from Sasuke and Ino's turn to snicker.

"We're not trying to kill each other," Sasuke went on, "but I don't expect you to go easy on me. I won't do the same for you." Turning swiftly, he vanished into the forest. The other three followed him, Hinata taking a deep breath and fidgeting. This was going to be terrible...

Ahead of them, Sasuke stopped and turned when he found a suitable area. With a single leap, he vaulted to a tree branch above, landing easily. Again the others followed him, perched on various branches about him. Taking note of their positions, Sasuke pulled off his long cloak and hung it on a branch above him, revealing light grey pants and a flak jacket beneath.

Then he promptly vanished. All three started, surprised at the raw speed displayed. Sensing a chakra snap into being behind her, Hinata dove forward, narrowly evading a fist moving toward the back of her head. He was really serious about not going easy on them. Her hands touched the tree lightly, and she swung both legs at Sasuke. Gliding away from both her kicks, he vanished once more.

Appearing on the forest floor, he leapt up toward Sakura, nearly blazing with chakra. Immediately she hurled several shuriken toward him, and he dissolved before them. Her hand was midway to her kunai pouch when Sasuke's hand clamped over her wrist; he was already spinning to kick her in the side of the head.

Hurling shuriken of her own, Ino sent a barrage toward Sasuke. To her surprise, he managed to not only avoid the attack by flipping forward, he kept his grip on Sakura's arm and slammed her into the tree trunk. With a silver rasp his kunai slid forward, but she vanished in a puff of chakra when it struck her.

On a lower branch, Hinata raised two fingers before her face and focused. Nearly flying up, she landed directly behind him, palm moving toward his back. With startling speed he caught her wrist, and she shrank back. That automatic reaction barely saved her from his swipe at her head. She jerked out of his grasp and vaulted away before he could strike again.

Ino converged upon Sasuke from two opposite directions. He ignored the clone completely and grasped the other's arm about the elbow. Gasping, Ino tried to pull away but discovered his grip was like a vise. It was tightening, too, forcing her elbow out of position like he was going to break it.

At that moment Sakura tossed several shuriken from an upward branch. Sasuke deflected them effortlessly with one hand- and Hinata's palm struck his back. For a moment he pitched forward, apparently damaged, but then he dissolved in a shower of mist. This time, no attack came immediately.

"Where is he?" Ino hissed, glancing about. The three subconsciously formed a triangle facing out. Suddenly the formerly innocent shadows of the forest seemed suspicious and dark.

"He's trying to psych us out," Sakura observed. "If he can get us off guard enough, he can strike before we can build a defense."

"You might be smarter than me, but sometimes you stated the blindly obvious."

"Ssh. I'm trying to concentrate." Sakura closed her eyes and brought both hands to her forehead. "I'm the only one of us who stands a chance of anticipating how he's going to attack. So far, he's been using hit and run tactics, which probably me-" Her voice cut off abruptly, but she was too late to do anything over than save herself. Forcing chakra into her feet, she burst from the tree limb.

She had barely left it when Sasuke morphed into being from the shadows, catching Ino's arm again and jerking it behind her back painfully. Landing on a nearby trunk, Sakura turned in time to realize that Hinata had replaced herself with a tree branch and that Sasuke's kunai was going to strike Ino's neck in a moment. Part of her mind toyed with the idea of letting him do it, but she knew he really wouldn't and that not doing anything would reflect badly upon her.

Formulating chakra, she leapt from the tree down toward him. Several dozen clones slid a kunai to hand at the same instant, flooding toward him. Flipping his kunai to his middle finger, Sasuke blew through his thumb and index finger, sending a stream of fire that enveloped all the attacking Sakuras. She barely managed to get into a defensive seal in time, and she could feel the flames biting away at her chakra.

When the blast faded, it was all she could do to land on a lower branch, then fall to one knee. Ino smirked, both at her rival failing and at what she was about to do. Her spirit flew backward, toward Sasuke at point-blank range... and suddenly he was in front of her body. Almost spitefully he glanced toward her spirit, then drove a palm into her body's forehead. The blow knocked her prone on the broad branch.

Turning immediately, Sasuke swung a broad kick at Hinata, who barely ducked out of the way. She moved forward to strike him, but he brushed her arm aside easily. His fist flew toward her head, but when she tried to catch his arm he jerked it away before she could make contact. Back stepping, Hinata avoided a flashing kick at her shins, then attacked. This time her palm hit his chest, and he staggered backward, his eyes momentarily wide-

Then he recovered, bolting forward and clothes lining her with his arm. She hit the tree branch hard and rolled off, but managed to balance her chakra to keep herself from falling. When she flipped back to the top, however, Sasuke had stopped attacking and was merely standing on another branch, the very one he had began the training session on.

Wordlessly he took his cloak and pulled it over himself again. The other three leapt to the branch beside him, with various levels of injury.

"That is enough for now," he told them. "I want to get further into the wilderness before we seriously train. A few things I noticed." His gaze flickered to Sakura. "Don't make frontal attacks. They'll fail. When you use your chakra, use it in such a manner that your opponent cannot counter it easily with a single stroke."

His gaze swiveled right. "No need to smirk, Ino-san, that applies to you, too. Also, stop relying on your body switching jutsu. There's no way it will be fast enough at this level of combat, even in its improved form. You do have other jutsu, right?"

"Of course," she said indignantly, folding her arms and glaring at Sakura. Sasuke merely nodded curtly and glanced to Hinata.

"You're holding back. Against me and against real opponents. Because you aren't willing to be aggressive you sacrifice a lot of your potential. You didn't hit me with a real inner coils attack, and you've waited to trigger your fatal jutsu in your opponents. Most of the time you have to struggle to make yourself strike, and you lose a fraction of a second you can't afford. Stop it."

"I-I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry; fix it." Sasuke turned away from them with a whirl of his dark cloak. In an instant he dropped to the forest floor and began walking back toward the campsite. "You have ten minutes to get ready," he told them without looking. "Then we depart."

"Hoo," Sakura breathed as soon as he was gone. "This is going to be intense."

"He certainly had a lot of bad things to say about you," Ino smirked.

"As opposed to you? He specifically implied you had my problems _and_ others! Of course, he was really down on Hinata-chan," Sakura pointed out, glancing at her. Ino lost all urge to argue, and she glanced back at Hinata with a strange look.

"I'm kind of surprised about that. Sasuke-kun isn't generally that mean."

"I-I don't think he meant it that way," Hinata answered softly. "He was just trying to help us get better. A-and he is right about me."

"That's true," Ino admitted selflessly. "In any case, we'll probably be training quite a bit more. With Sasuke-kun, we might actually get better. I was thinking-" Sasuke's voice called "Eight minutes," from below, and they all rushed to get ready. There was still a long day ahead of them.

* * *

I found the comment regarding Shikamaru moving interesting. For the sake of this story, yes, it was better to have him move. Seeing as that Sand and Leaf are allies (much more strongly so than in the past, given their Kages), however, it isn't a very big deal.

Glad to hear you liked Shikamaru and Temari together, Kesshin; I enjoyed writing their scenes quite a bit.

Regarding the jutsu Sasuke used against Ino and Sakura in the previous chapter: it was a fairly basic Mangekyou Sharingan technique (how he gotthat I simply won't specify). It does essentially what the jutsu Itachi used against Kakashi did: it invades the mind of the target and alters their reality. However, this was a much weaker version, consuming less chakra and doing only minor things such as making them fall asleep. It also more or less blanked memory of itself.


	8. Careful

As usual, there are responses after the chapter.

* * *

Chapter Eight: Careful 

Her eyes flickered open slowly, still heavy from sleep. Waking up this way was very pleasant; most of the time on missions you had to sleep with one eye open and be fully awake in an instant. There wasn't much to look at, just campfire ashes. Blinking solid white eyes, Hinata forced herself to her feet.

She didn't really remember much of the past night, probably because she had fallen asleep nearly instantly. After the brief training session, they had traveled at moderate speed for the rest of the day. Lots had fallen so that she had the first watch, and as soon as she woke Sakura she was bone tired. In fact, she had just laid down on her bedroll and gone to sleep. Most likely, each day was going to be like this.

Obviously, she had run for long distances before, but Sasuke led harder than any of the leaders she had worked under. His speed was just past comfortable, which tired them all though it significantly increased their rate of travel. Sakura and Ino had started whining midway through the day, and by the end were unable to speak at all. She had felt pretty tired herself, but decided not to say anything. As usual, Sasuke seemed completely blind, or simply uncaring, to their troubles, not lessening his pace. By the end of the day, though, he had worked up a healthy sweat as well.

Stretching, Hinata glanced around the campsite. Ino and Sakura were sound asleep and Sasuke was gone. When she stepped off her bedroll, she realized her feet were bare. Apparently she had managed to take off her sandals before collapsing, then. Not bothering to replace them, she padded out into the forest.

The sound of running water caught her attention, and she moved toward it. Cleaning up might do her some good. Pushing aside several branches, Hinata discovered a small stream peacefully making its way through the forest. Any chances of taking a bath, however, evaporated.

Sasuke was standing on the bank, clad in light grey pants and having changed into a black shirt. At the moment he was still turned away from her; she knew she should announce her presence but couldn't bring herself to speak. His hair was still wet and glistening. As she watched he pulled his cloak around himself... and then turned purposefully to glance at her.

"Yes?"

"I-I'm sorry," she immediately backed away.

"Feh." He turned away and picked up his pack, slinging it over one shoulder silently. Just before he vanished into the forest, he paused and spoke without turning. "I'm waking everyone soon. After breakfast, we'll be doing a real training session. Be ready."

She nodded at his back, then shivered.

* * *

When Sakura awoke, it was to the smell of breakfast. To her great surprise, the person cooking the food was Sasuke. Sitting calmly on a log, he was stoking the fire with a long stick. She gave a slight squeal as she sat up. 

"Sasuke-kun! That's so sweet of you!"

"Mf-wha?" Ino mumbled, likewise sitting up. She gave a similar squeal.

Getting to his feet, Sasuke glanced down at them and then vanished into the forest's shadows. Just at the instant Sakura began to reach for the meat slowly cooking, Ino's hand wrapped around her wrist. They both growled at each other, and Sakura wrenched her hand away with a glower.

"Don't steal this! Sasuke-kun made it for me!"

"For _you_? Why would he make anything for you?"

In unison both of them made a grab at it, scorched their hands, pulled their hands back wincing and then glared at the other like it was her fault. As they settled to glaring at one another, Hinata entered the clearing on the opposite side Sasuke had exited. Ignoring the two of them, who returned the favor, Hinata carefully took the spit away from the fire and sat down.

Cutting off portions of the unidentifiable meat, Hinata ate slowly and carefully. It was fairly good, which meant it was probably made by Sasuke. Her immediate thought was to thank him for it, but she realized that he wouldn't appreciate the gesture. Best to keep silent and not annoy him, then. She glanced up at Ino and Sakura, pulling at each other's hair, and sighed. If only there was some way she could make them be happy as they were, then Sasuke would be less withdrawn and everything would be better.

By the time Ino and Sakura noticed Hinata she had eaten her fill. They grabbed the spit away from her, but by this stage their anger had dissipated to the point where they cut the remainder in half civilly enough. For a brief moment the camp was quiet and peaceful, the only sounds the dying fire and chewing.

At that point Sasuke reemerged from the forest. Wordlessly he folded his cloak beside his pack and quenched the fire with a strange movement of chakra. All eyes were on him, though for varying reasons.

"Let's go," he ordered as starkly as usual. "There isn't any civilization or chakra for a dozen kilometers. Today we're going to train to exhaustion."

"To exhaustion?" Ino echoed, jaw dropping.

"But, but, Sasuke-kun," Sakura began to whine, but she shut up as Sasuke's stormy eyes turned on her. They scrambled to get up and follow him, though Hinata just had to get up. Soon the campground was behind them and Ino and Sakura no longer seemed panicked, merely trying in vain to get tangles out of their hair.

Eventually Sasuke stopped, in the center of a medium sized clearing.

"Use taijutsu or weapons," he told them. With that, he abruptly skidded backward, among them in an instant. His sandal flashed at Hinata's face and she threw up a hand in self defense, managing to deflect it with her forearm. Immediately after, Sasuke continued his chain of attacks with two light blows that knocked Sakura and Ino back without doing real damage.

"That's not fair," Sakura complained, getting back to her feet. "I wasn't ready."

"Then hope you are more ready in actual combat." With that, Sasuke slid back to the opposite side of the clearing and dropped into a fighting position. Though the lower half of his face was visible now, it might as well have been covered, for all of his emotions that it revealed. Hinata started to back step to get into a safer position, but saw Sasuke's eyes flicker to her and harden. Taking a deep breath, she attacked.

* * *

Spitting a bit of blood out of her mouth, Ino slipped each hand into her kunai pouch. Several drops of sweat trickled down from her hair, more due to stress than effort. Of course, she was sweating profusely from that as well. But Sasuke was currently in the center of the clearing, standing alone and unchallenged. Sooner or later he'd find her, and then he'd attack. Though she never would have admitted it, when he attacked she found herself disturbed. Everyone knew the story of Sasuke and his brother, and she loved the angst, but he seemed more like Itachi at times… 

With a single violent motion she hurled both kunai toward him. As expected, he deflected both of them, knocking them aside with a batting motion of his wrist. In the moment he was distracted, Sakura made her gamble and attacked from behind. He turned and deflected her attack without apparent effort.

Gasping, Sakura vaulted away from him, narrowly avoiding his slashing kick. She had learned some time ago that staying near him for long was a very bad idea. Shooting off the ground, she vanished into the leaves and found herself by Ino. Sasuke was about to attack both of them, but was forced to back away when Hinata flew from the nearby trees.

"He really isn't letting up," Ino panted softly. Sakura nodded wearily.

"He's really going after Hinata today, too. Why do you suppose that is?"

"How should I know?" Ino shrugged. "It seems like he really doesn't like her."

"Yeah, but he isn't like that. Maybe... one of the rules of the shinobi is that you should always attempt to eliminate the greatest threat first."

The two of them glanced at each other with raised eyebrows for a silent moment.

"Naaah."

"Yeah, I crack myself up." Sakura glanced between the leaves and saw the two of them still clashing in flurries of blows. "Let's get down there."

Just as both of them landed in the clearing to either side of Hinata, however, Sasuke swept back away from them. By this point he was actually breathing heavily, and his brow was lined with sweat. He raised a hand indicating them to wait a moment, which they did.

"Are we done now?" Sakura asked. Sasuke shook his head.

"Not yet." He reached down and started to pull off his black shirt. Sakura and Ino held the same breath and Hinata glanced at them strangely. But Sasuke had on a smaller white shirt (Sakura and Ino groaned), and he tossed the black shirt aside and then dropped into his fighting stance again. "Not even close."

* * *

Biting her lip, Sakura tied the last string and then stepped back hastily. This trap always made her fairly nervous, because it had such a high chance of flying off at any moment. Of course, she didn't have a choice, because Sasuke would never set off any trap simpler than this one. 

She didn't really expect him to fall for it, either. It was a very deadly one, a bundle of razor sharp needles that would explode in all directions when someone got close. The only problem was that it was so hair-trigger, but she was a master of traps. Ino had been fighting Sasuke directly to buy her enough time, so-

At that moment Sakura heard a loud cry. Her head whipped up as she realized it was Ino's. The next second there was a thump, probably her hitting the ground. It was followed up by a few curses, and Sakura grinned; she would be just fine then. On the other hand, she now had to deal with Sasuke's chakra flying in her direction.

The plan was to let him charge her, then replace herself with a clone when he got near. Too near, theoretically, to avoid setting off the trap. At that point he'd probably pull some impossible stunt to avoid being injured, because he was always cool like that.

For a split second Sakura saw Sasuke charging forward, and knew he'd be on her in a moment. Surprisingly, he skidded to a halt and instead hurled a kunai toward her. Taken off guard, it was the best she could do to dodge it. He'd thrown it really slowly... was he getting tired, or had Ino managed to injure him?

Her eyes widened as she heard the snap of a spring, following instantly by the whistle of spikes burst out in a vicious shockwave. Even at full speed, it was all she could do to turn and gape in horror at the spines hurtling toward her. It seemed like they were moving in slow motion, yet she was in molasses, unable to move herself out of the way...

Sasuke flashed directly in front of her, hands flying. When the attack ended, the trees in a circle around the trap had been made into pincushions, except those behind Sakura. She had unintentionally closed her eyes at the last second and now opened them to see Sasuke drop dozens of needles he had caught between his fingers. He folded his arms and glanced at her, eyes dark and probably angry. But at least he was looking directly at her.

Ino appeared in the clearing as well, partially leaning on Hinata. It was abruptly obvious to all of them that the training session was over.

"Ino-san: you need to tighten your kicks, and don't use that jutsu," Sasuke observed. "You leave yourself open. Hinata-san: better, but you still seem afraid of your own abilities; get over it. Sakura-san..." he turned back to her with a slightly reproving look that nearly made her wither. "Remember that traps can be used against you. Don't leave that as a possibility. In real combat, you would be dead or you would have compromised the safety of all your teammates."

He turned away swiftly and was already walking away as he continued. "I'll give you all time to recover strength before we run again." With that he vanished toward the campsite. The forest was just beginning to light up with the morning light.

Sakura and Ino were talking; they might have been casually chatting, they might have been arguing, it really wasn't that different. Hinata had stopped listening. Speeding up slightly, she left them in the trees behind her. She was deeply tired and a fair amount of her chakra was drained. Her eyes ached from so much use of the Byukagen. But it was absolutely necessary for fighting Sasuke; he had startling reach and hit extremely hard. Worst of all, he was staying slightly away from her to avoid any critical inner coils strikes; he was nearly able to neutralize her attacking ability.

Reaching the campsite, Hinata found Sasuke sitting on one of the logs, a grim non-expression on his face. Trying her best not to be annoying, she slipped down into a seat of her own, some distance away. She tried not to make eye contact, but something seemed strange and she glanced back up.

Immediately she realized what was wrong. Sasuke's shoulder was bleeding somewhat, due to several needles entirely through it. He had been moving his arm stiffly, she now realized, but had hidden it very well. Even as she watched he pulled them all out in one motion that was at once clinically precise and rough. Dropping the bloody weapons to the ground, he glanced up at her wordlessly.

To avoid his gaze Hinata found her pack and began rooting through it. "I-if you don't mind, I can help you with that," she managed to make herself say. Finding a jar of ointment and some bandages, she hesitantly approached him. His expression was cold, but she knew he would have told her to stay away if he objected, so she moved forward.

All he did was wince slightly at the first application of the ointment, but then his shoulder muscles relaxed and allowed her to work. The shoulder of his shirt had been ripped away already, which made her job much easier. Hinata reached for her bandages and-

"Oh my gosh! Sasuke-kun was injured?"

Instantly Ino and Sakura were swarming about him, their own bandages and healing devices prepared. Quite abruptly Sasuke jerked to his feet, knocking Hinata back slightly and making the other two shrink away.

"It's fine," he snapped at them. "It will heal." With that he stalked into the forest and erased his presence completely.

"That's so cute," Sakura crooned. "He doesn't want to admit he's injured."

"It bears mentioning _why_ he's injured." Ino coughed lightly into her hand.

"If I remember correctly, it wasn't just my plan!" Sakura shot back. Both of them seemed too tired to argue any further, and merely sat down heavily to rest. While Ino settled back against a tree, her eyes roved about the camp and eventually focused on Hinata.

"Why do you have bandages?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. Immediately the female shinobi winced away slightly.

"M-my hand," she managed to stammer for a moment. She held it up to reveal a darkening bruise. "It, it got injured when Sas-Sasuke-san hit it."

"Huh; okay." Ino sat back and closed her eyes. Sighing, Hinata began to wrap her palm. It really did need to be bandaged, after all, so it hadn't been a lie. But if that was true, then why did she feel so guilty?

* * *

Just a note regarding names: not everyone in this story originates from the principle shinobi countries. I thought it would be unreasonable for an entire world to have names of Japanese origin, so there is some variety (some fairly arbitrary, as the former characters, some intentional and somewhat important). If this is distracting I apologize. 

I'd also like to personally thank Scented Candles for her extensive review. It does me good to read a lengthy review from a longtime reader of fanfiction that has something positive to say. I hope that the rest of the story does not disappoint. However, I also wish to ask a question regarding your review: you stated that you thought it was likely you would not enjoy the story. What led you to this? If it is personal taste the question is irrelevant, but otherwise I would appreciate your response.


	9. Broken

This chapter is, I believe, the first of the special character features. There are also responses following the chapter.

* * *

Chapter Nine: Broken

"S... Sasuke-kun!"

He glanced over his shoulder expressionlessly, not slowing his run in the slightest. Panting, Sakura couldn't manage to make herself say any more for some time. When she managed to catch her breath, she continued.

"We've been running for days," she breathed.

"Do you need more breaks?" Sasuke asked. Seeing Sakura couldn't answer, Ino stepped in.

"It isn't that. It's just that we haven't done anything else for so long. Couldn't we do something different to break the monotony?"

Sasuke paused, then nodded briefly. "In two kilometers there will be a medium sized city. We're running low on supplies. When we stop there we'll remain for the rest of the day."

Motivated, Ino and Sakura slid back away from him and continued running. Behind them, Hinata gulped; what would she do for the rest of the day? She was certain Sakura and Ino had their own ideas, and Sasuke would probably vanish like he usually did, but she would be left alone. As usual.

Two kilometers really wasn't that far, at their speed, and Sasuke halted some distance before the city anyway. Dropping his pack heavily, he sat back against a tree, focusing on breathing deeply. The other three halted as well, just grateful to be off their feet. For a long moment no one could speak as they all recovered from the run.

"So what are we going to do tonight?" Sakura asked. "We can't need that many supplies, so we probably have a lot of time."

"I think I've been to this city once before," Ino commented with a sly expression on her face, "back in my Chuunin days. If I remember correctly, it had a great nightlife."

"Really?" Sakura's expression abruptly made Hinata wonder if this hadn't already been planned. "That's a pretty good idea, for someone like you. Why don't we go clubbing?" Both of them glanced to Sasuke; his cloak hid his face and his hair shadowed his eyes. Without looking up, he spoke simply.

"You can if you want."

"But, Sasuke-kun," Ino begged. "It won't be any fun without you!"

"Then don't go. If you're going to be in town, get the things we need." With that he stood up and vanished into the forest, leaving Ino and Sakura pouting.

"Now what?" Sakura's voice dripped with venom.

"I wasn't counting on that," Ino muttered. "You'd think he'd want to have fun some of the time."

"Are we still going to go?"

Ino shrugged. "I don't see why not. Hinata-chan, do you want to- ah, why am I asking you? That isn't your type of thing, is it?"

"I-I'd rather stay here," Hinata told her unnecessarily. The very last place in the world she wanted to be was in a nightclub, certainly not with them. Of course, she still didn't have any idea of what she was going to do here.

"Fortunately, I thought to bring along a decent dress," Sakura grinned, pulling her pack nearer her.

"Aw, that's not fair," Ino grumbled.

"Hah!"

"...but I still have what I was vacationing in. Hah to you!"

"I'm going on a walk," Hinata told them softly. She was mostly ignored, so she left by herself. Sasuke had gone north and the city was to the west, so she went south, hopefully away from everyone. He wouldn't want to be followed anyway. The voices of the other two planning and chatting faded behind her as she moved deeper into the forest.

It was an old one, covered in deep green mosses. She hadn't really noticed when they had come this way before because they had been rushing so much. In a strange way, it was very beautiful. There was a silent sense of ancientness that she didn't want to break. For what seemed like a long time, she continued walking.

Eventually she came to a small clearing. Hinata quietly leaned back against a tree and sighed. Getting away from everything was so nice. Being around other people almost always made her nervous, uptight and fidgety. But here, she didn't have the slightest inclination to fidget or shrink away from anything. So peaceful...

While she was here, however, she might as well train. Training in groups always made her uncomfortable as well, because she couldn't help comparing herself to the others. Raising a hand, Hinata activated her Byukagen and focused. Her sight sped forward, scrying through the forest she had walked in at incredible speed. She briefly dwelled on the campsite long enough to realize that Sakura and Ino had left, then shifted her gaze.

At nearly the end of her range she found the city and did her best to pinpoint the two of them. She managed to, but not nearly fast enough to suit her. After that she tried for a much more difficult task: finding Sasuke. After searching the northern regions of the forest, however, she came up with nothing. He was probably hiding his presence.

Drawing her vision back to herself, Hinata parted from the tree and turned to face it. Now to see if she could still do this... she took a deep breath and closed her eyes, trying her best to believe that she could. She had done it before, but it was such a daunting task. Regulating her breathing and trying to calm herself, Hinata opened her eyes and focused her Byukagen to a greater degree.

She slid forward to the tree, slapping both her hands to its trunk. Withdrawing the next instant, she hit it four times, then eight... sixteen... thirty two... sixty four! The tree trunk was mostly unharmed by her gentle touches, but she was satisfied that a real opponent would have had their chakra flow completely shut off. Of course, a real opponent probably wouldn't have let her waste that much time, but she could work on the speed if-

"That was Neji-san's technique, wasn't it?"

Whirling, Hinata found Sasuke standing at the edge of her clearing. His presence was nearly invisible, and the shadows nearly enveloped him. His voice had been soft and he made no sound now; it seemed almost as if he were a part of the forest.

"Yes," she answered with a timid nod. "He t-taught it to me a while ago."

"Good," Sasuke answered vaguely. "Do you want a sparring partner?"

"I wouldn't want to k-keep you from doing what you need to do," Hinata insisted, shrinking away subconsciously.

"All I do when I leave is train. I need to keep the edge on my skills."

"But... but wouldn't I just pull you down?"

"No." Sasuke emerged from the shadows to stand opposite her. "It's important to be ready for soft-styled shinobi as well. I need the practice."

"Alright," Hinata managed to make herself say. Taking a deep breath, she dropped into her fighting stance, just moments before Sasuke attacked. Startled, she managed to break away from his blow, though just barely.

Already his leg was kicking at her, but by this point she wasn't surprised at his speed. The best she could do was block the attack. Before she could use the contact to inflict an inner coils strike, however, he jerked his leg away and was hitting again. This blow she was also able to turn aside. She was about to block his next punch as well, but suddenly remembered what he had said about being too timid.

Instead she slid around the blow, getting closer to him and hitting him in the chest, directly over the heart. He stumbled backward, blood welling up in his mouth. Despite herself, Hinata winced and drew her hands closer to her mouth.

"I-I'm sorry..."

"Why?" Turning his head aside, Sasuke spat out blood, then wiped his mouth. "I was asking you to attack me, wasn't I? In any case, it will take a lot more than one inner coils strike to kill me." She had forgotten how tough he was and immediately felt guilty for giving in to her reaction. Shaking herself, she moved into an offensive position and waited for him. His eyes were shadowed heavily by his hair. "In real combat," he told her, "I'd stay out of your range. But for the sake of training, let's try this again."

When he glanced up at her his eyes glowed red, Sharingan spinning within them. She tried to attack before he could completely activate them, but found she was easily dodged. Reading her movements carefully, Sasuke evaded her strikes. This time, she was attacking swiftly, probably realizing that if she gave him a chance he'd hit back.

Not fast enough. Before her hand could strike his forehead, he grabbed her wrist firmly. His other hand drove into her chin before she could even gasp. As she fell back from the blow, however, she managed to break away from him.

Instantly Sasuke tried to capitalize on his advantage before she could escape; he barely missed. Faster than he could react to, her hand traced its way over his arm. Before she could escape his range, Sasuke hammered a kick into her stomach, sending her flying into a nearby tree. Bursting off the ground, he followed up his kick with a punch, but realized her hand had left chakra across his shoulder.

As fast as possible Sasuke broke away. Hinata was already raising her fingers, ready to activate the chakra implanted in his body. Just before she could do so, Sasuke closed his eyes tightly and expelled the chakra into the air around him. It burned harmlessly away, but Sasuke could only open his eyes in time to see Hinata's foot flying for his face.

Falling backward, Sasuke flipped in midair and landed agilely on his feet. None the less, he _had_ taken damage. Hinata watched him carefully, and realized that there was the slightest expression on his face. Almost... almost like he was enjoying this.

Building her chakra around herself, Hinata attacked again.

* * *

Silence had reasserted its control over the forest. The clearing was mostly still intact, with only a few trees with scraped bark and some limbs snapped off. It still maintained its aura of ancientness and dignity. Sasuke and Hinata sat in the center, backs to the opposite sides of the tree in the middle. Both were slightly slumped, catching their breath and letting sore muscles relax. It was a long time before either of them needed to speak.

"You did better," Sasuke told her eventually. "But you're still afraid of what you can do. Don't be; it's stupid. You seem to have difficulty with that lesson, but if you master it you'll be much more effective."

"Al-alright," she agreed, nodding even though he couldn't see her. They both paused again, with little else to say.

Finally Hinata made herself speak up. "May... may I ask you a question, Sasuke-san?"

"Go ahead."

"I head about some of this from Naruto-kun, but I'm not sure I understand. For a long time," she began slowly, not wanting to actually ask her question, "you were trying to kill your brother. But, but now... what are you fighting for? What makes you keep... I don't know, I'm sorry; I'm not making any sens-"

"I'm not sure," Sasuke interrupted her. "I don't care about rank. Naruto-san is best suited to be Hokage anyway; it is a fool's job, and he would like to be a fool. Without my brother, you could say I don't have any motivation." He closed his eyes. "But I know why I keep training, why I keep forcing myself to grow. I want to make sure that no one can ever kill the people I care about again."

His pronouncement left another silence in the clearing. Something about the statement seemed as old as the forest itself. Hinata couldn't bring herself to speak, startled by his words. It was the most she had heard him say at once in a long time, and the first time she had heard him talk about himself. Against that, she found that she had absolutely nothing to say, yet she felt as if she should say something. She began to fidget again...

"Enough rest," Sasuke said, pushing himself to his feet. "Again."

* * *

When Sakura and Ino returned to camp the hour was late, they were noisy and possibly more than a little drunk. Sasuke had already gone to sleep, his back facing the fire, unmoving as a stone; Hinata stood watch, standing to prevent herself from falling asleep as well. She barely noticed them before they got to the campfire, and immediately reprimanded herself. If they had been enemies, they could have attacked before she had realized they were there.

"...had a smashing good time," Sakura was saying, leaning partially on Ino's shoulder.

"Too bad Sashuke-kun didn't come," Ino slurred, glancing at his silent form. "No fun that way."

"Poor Sasuke-koon. All alone back here."

"He won't always be alone," Ino snickered. Sakura looked as though she was about to make a comeback, then shrugged and partially collapsed onto her bedroll. Ino staggered to her own and flopped down heavily. Fidgeting, Hinata faded into the shadows a few moments too late to avoid being seen.

"What about you, Hinata-chan?" Sakura asked sleepily. "Were you bored?"

"I-I was fine."

"Well, that'sh good. You should come with us next time..." her voice trailed away. Both of them fell asleep surprisingly quickly, leaving Hinata alone once again. The campfire barely cast any light, as it had been carefully created to be unnoticeable by others. Its light was strange, and put the entire scene in a strange light. Very unreal.

Starting slightly, Hinata realized that she had done nothing but stare at the fire for a long time. At this point she was having trouble keeping her eyes open. She blinked rapidly a few times and struggled to stand a bit straighter. Sparring so much today had left her completely worn out, far more so than the running. Exhaustion had always been difficult for her to overcome. But she had to get to the end of her watch safely, before she would wake Sasuke. Maybe he wouldn't mind if she woke him a bit early... but no, he would mind.

"My turn." Both Hinata's eyes widened as she heard the voice and focused her vision behind her. Sasuke was in the shadows just behind the tree she was leaning again, still nearly invisible. Wow, she was sleepier than she thought, if she hadn't even noticed him get up.

"I don't think it's your turn yet," Hinata whispered back. "I-I should finish my watch."

"You need your rest. Right now, you won't be much use on guard."

"Thank you, Sasuke-san," she blurted before she could convince herself otherwise. As usual, his eyes said nothing and most of his face was hidden by his dark collar. But the fact that he hadn't ignored her thanks meant he at least wasn't upset.

Returning to her own bedroll, Hinata lay down and instantly began to give way to sleep. Now that she wasn't fighting it, her weariness overcame her surprisingly quickly. Her eyes opened briefly before closing in sleep; her last sight was the eerily lit camp, Sasuke standing guard with his body half in light, half in shadow.

* * *

Hooking his fingers on the loops in his pants, the restaurant owner glanced over the empty bar. Still only one person left. He was supposed to close at nine, but he hadn't had any customers since after seven. Except for that one guy, who was still sitting at the end of the bar, like he had most of the evening.

After they'd forced him to stop eating the all-you-can-eat buffet, he'd just remained there. Later in the evening he'd started ordering drinks, and now seemed to be in a partially-drunken stupor. The owner hadn't really seen this guy before, and by inquiring discovered that he'd been kicked out of all the other restaurants in town. He couldn't really blame them, either; this guy was obviously a bum. Fortunately it seemed he'd gotten money from someplace, because he had been able to pay for what he bought. As long as the fool had money, he could stay.

Normally he would have closed up shop a long time ago, but this guy was still there. It was really beginning to annoy him. He'd washed all the dishes, cleaned all the glasses, dusted the bar and the chairs... and now he had basically nothing to do. Owning a ramen shop was such a pain at times.

Being bored, he did one of the few things that he was able to do: observe the man slumped by the bar. He was rough-shaven, and when his eyes had been open they had been bleary. The few times he had talked his voice seemed whiny and depressed. Most obviously, he was hideously overweight. Shuddering slightly, the owner looked away from the folds of fat.

"Hey, buddy," he said loudly, shaking the man's shoulder. The customer mumbled something and glanced at him, eyes unfocused. "It's time to go home."

"Shop doesn't close until nine," was the only response, muttered against the table.

"You haven't ordered anything in a while."

"Gonna wanna eat later."

"Okay, no offense, but you don't need to eat any more."

"Hungry." With that the obese man slumped further against the bar. His stool seemed to be bearing the weight quite well, and the owner congratulated himself on buying such a quality product. But this guy was still here, and not inclined to leave. Even at his best, the owner wasn't sure he could move that much weight.

With a sigh he pulled up a chair to his side of the bar and sat down opposite the other man.

"Have it your way, then," he grumbled, pouring himself a drink. "What's your name, anyway?"

"Chouji."

Briefly the owner cocked his head, then shrugged. "Huh. Never heard of ya. Where're ya from?"

"Konoha."

"Really? That's a creepy place, if I don't say so myself. I thought everybody from there was all them real skinny ninjas. Not a guy like..." his voice trailed off as he realized what he had been about to do.

"A guy like what?" Chouji demanded, lifting himself from the bar with supreme effort. His fat features glowered when he didn't get a response. "What were you going to say?"

"Well... just that... I didn't think they had guys there quite your size, if you know what I mean..."

"That's what they all say," the other responded bitterly, dropping his head to the table once again.

The instant he did so, the owner caught sight of someone dressed entirely in black robes standing on the street, staring toward him with intense eyes. This new man was only still for an instant before making a violent movement with one hand: something silver flashed toward the owner. In that instant, he abruptly realized that he was seeing one of those ninjas, that the projectiles were going to fly forward and into his head, killing him instantly. Was it really going to end like this? Ho-

A razor sharp point hovered a short distance away from the owner's face, which was still bathed in sweat. Slowly he became aware of his own heavy breathing, and realized that the bladed weapon wasn't moving, and that it wasn't going to kill him. He managed to look away from the sharp edge and saw the hand of the man at the bar clenched around the back end of the knife.

Slowly he pushed himself up, then swiveled around and glanced toward the man in the street. The two of them kept eye contact for some time, neither saying anything. On the street, the assassin was grinning; the owner couldn't see his customer's face.

"Even me?" Chouji finally asked, voice seeming desperate. "Don't you ever give up?"

"Yes, even you," the robed man laughed. "Even a lazy, washed-up shinobi like you. I can't believe they assigned me this... how pathetic. The last few times I at least had a bit of a challenge."

"Then do what you have come to do," Chouji said heavily, slumping on his stool, fat redoubling.

"Imagine some of your kind being so reasonable," the other shinobi snickered, sliding another kunai to his hand with a rasp. The next instant he charged forward, something like a wind going before him and knocking the restaurant owner backward.

When Chouji moved, he did so in a single snapping motion. One flabby hand clamped around his opponent's wrist, preventing the kunai from striking his head. Gracefully the other shinobi flicked a kunai to his other hand and slashed, the blow going through Chouji's side. _Probably didn't strike much more than flab..._

Just as the assassin was about to kick, Chouji stepped heavily on his foot, at the same moment he got a hold of the man's other wrist. The two remained locked there, neither moving. For the first time the assassin was somewhat surprised; there must be at least some muscle under all that fat.

"I suppose you think you've won because you've stopped me," he snickered. "But do you really think this is all the strength I have?" His opponent seemed confused, eyes trying to focus on him. "We know you have shinobi training, Chouji; we're not going to send an ordinary assassin after you. No, no, we sent someone who can kill a Chuunin." With that he pulled back at full strength... and didn't budge.

"Chuunin? What do you mean by Chuunin?" Chouji asked, mist swirling around him. When he spoke his voice had changed, becoming deeper and resonant. His would-be assassin started slightly as the hands on his wrists grew and lost their fat. The angle was changing, too... and suddenly he found himself in the grip of a gigantic man. _How... how is that possible? He has to be at least seven feet tall!_

Before his newly transformed opponent could attack, the assassin whirled off the ground, his remaining free leg aiming to smash into his opponent's temple. With reflexes far quicker than before, Chouji used his leverage to move him away. Not fast, enough, though. The assassin grinned as he realized his blow would still strike his opponent's shoulder.

It did... and Chouji didn't even move. Still in midair, the assassin realized that the Leaf shinobi's shoulder and arm looked like chiseled granite. His foot actually hurt from the impact.

Not as much as Chouji's knee hurt him. He flew backward, crashing heavily into the street. Instantly Chouji was attacking again, but he was too slow to hit his opponent, who nimbly dodged out of the way. Landing on his feet some distance back, the assassin wiped away blood from his face and growled.

While they faced off, Chouji raised one hand. Confused, the other shinobi raised his eyebrows. What was he trying to do? He could sense chakra being spent, but it wasn't powering his opponent up in any way. All it seemed to be doing was shifting about normal fat and muscle cells. Worthless. Besides, he could always stop the jutsu with a hail of shuriken.

Before he could consider such a maneuver, his target stamped on the ground. Raw force split through the street, forcing the assassin to leap from it. Chouji was directly in his face the next instant, his fist flying. When it hit, it felt like a stone wall had punched him. _His hand has to weigh more than a ton..._

Considering replacing himself with a clone and ditching this assassination attempt entirely, the shinobi could only gape in horror when Chouji shifted into being above him. One massive leg smashed into his chest. The blow took him all the way to the ground and knocked him through a level of the street. Concrete flew in every direction, and the body of the assassin splashed into the sewer waters below.

Shooting a glance down into the hole, Chouji checked to make sure his opponent was dead and nodded curtly once. He strolled back to the ramen shop, now ducking to get beneath the slight overhang and sit in one of the now undersized chairs. On the opposite side of the bar, the owner stood frozen in astonishment.

"So," Chouji rumbled, slapping down a bit of gold onto the bar. "How about that ramen?"

* * *

Well, it seems I am now listed in a C2 as its 100th story. I'm not really responsible for that, but thank you for the honor none the less.

Regarding "Feh": It is a sound effect indicating a dismissive noise; I believe it far predates Inuyasha. I used it merely because I felt it effectively brought across the effect I wanted.

Scented Candles: Thank you for clarifying. Your general impressions of characters arefairly accurate. As for the spelling, I will admit that I didn't look up Byakugen and merely went from memory on the theory that most people gloss over the word. In any case, thank you for pointing that out, but I think I will remain consistent, if wrong.


	10. Kiba and Tenten

I apologize for the slight delay in uploading this chapter. Numerous other comments follow the chapter.

* * *

Chapter Ten: Kiba and Tenten

In a few moments Sasuke shifted from running at top speed to a complete halt. The others couldn't begin to react to the stop; Sakura nearly stumbled over herself in the attempt, Ino shot on past and then trotted back, Hinata flipped forward and used one hand to drag herself to a halt.

"Something to the west and east," Sasuke said, voice tense. "Can you sense anything?"

"Yeah, you're right," Ino nodded thoughtfully. "There's a lot of chakra."

"I sensed it," Sakura admitted, "but I thought it was just ordinary happenings in Hidden Leaf. But that's a few more degrees south, isn't it...?"

"T-to the east there are people fighting," Hinata informed them, Byukagen fully evidenced on her face. "I can't tell who they are, but one of them is a Leaf Anbu."

"I recognize the chakra in the west," Sasuke said starkly. "Both of them are under attack. If we want to have any impact, we have to go now. Split up into pairs, finish the battles and meet back here."

He started to move to the east, and Sakura and Ino nearly crashed into each other trying to follow him. Briefly they were locked shoulder to shoulder, growling, but then they noticed him watching them with decided irritation and their expressions changed to pleading.

"Shouldn't we-"

"I was thin-"

"-work together bec-"

"-king we could-"

"No!" Sasuke snapped. "There are more important things on the line here than the two of you! You!" His finger shot out at them almost dangerously; his tone refused to be argued with. "Go wrap things up in the west. Now."

"Right, Sasuke-kun!"

"Sorry, Sasuke-kun!" They were both gone in the twinkling of an eye.

Whirling, robe flying about him, Sasuke blazed into the trees, a dangerous streak of black. Hinata barely managed to move when he did and didn't get too far behind immediately. By the time they were half way there she had caught up to him. Ahead of them, the battle was still going on, two shinobi versus the Anbu.

Nervously Hinata glanced sideways at Sasuke. His eyes were blazing with an expression she could only define as irritation. Very similar to how he had seemed when he had killed the assassin atop the coach. Part of her pitied his opponents.

They exploded onto the battle scene, dust they had just barely been staying ahead of sweeping past them and blasting at all the combatants. The Leaf Anbu braced himself with a hand seal and stood his ground; his two attackers were swept back. Both easily landed in upper branches of nearby trees.

As the dust settled, Hinata abruptly realized there was something familiar about the Anbu they had come to rescue. His long black robe was traditional enough, but the hood was lined with black fur, and his mask was shaped vaguely like a dog. For a moment they just stared at each other, then the Anbu waved cheerily.

"Hey, Hinata-chan!"

"H-hello, Kiba-kun," she answered nervously. His eyes were invisible behind his mask, but he seemed to be looking only at her. Normally he probably would have made some smart remark to Sasuke standing behind her... which meant that Sasuke must not be behind her. Looking back over what had happened, she realized that she had just barely seen a dark flicker in all the dust. So that was what he was doing.

"Long time, no see, eh?" he asked, scratching the back of his head. Hinata found herself shrinking back just slightly. He was as loud as he had always been...

Both shinobi attacked from above, one of them with a kunai in each hand and the other with a massive blade. They had only bridged half the distance when something burst from in between Hinata and Kiba and flashed between the attackers. When it made contact its momentum slowed long enough to be identifiable as Sasuke, both his fists buried in his opponents' stomachs.

They hurtled backward, but both landed on their feet easily. Not very injured, then; they still seemed to have plenty of chakra as well. Sasuke dropped back to the ground and stepped back between his allies, eyes focused completely on the enemy assassins.

"Aw, you don't have to be so nice to me," Kiba laughed raucously, as if shinobi determined to kill him were not standing a short distance away. "That's so sweet of you."

"Shut up, Kiba-san," Sasuke responded levelly. "What do we know about them?"

"On, this and that," Kiba answered lightly. Only because of her panoramic vision did Hinata catch a swift sign he made with one hand. She didn't recognize it, but Sasuke's gaze briefly flickered when it appeared, so he must have understood. "I do appreciate you coming here, though: these bastards have a lot of chakra. Can't afford to squander my own on such a time sensitive mission."

Briefly Sasuke glanced over Kiba's head at Hinata. She nodded just slightly to indicate that she knew their opponents had been replaced by illusions. The instant she did so, Sasuke shot from his position, kunai swinging through both illusions. They dissolved before him, and a massive blade was swinging for the back of his head the next instant.

Hinata imposed herself between Sasuke and the massive body of the enemy shinobi. Her one hand raised in defense seemed pitifully inadequate... but the next instant the assassin was collapsing backward, a shower of blood exploding from his mouth. Even as he crashed to the ground, barely landing on his feet, Kiba was swinging through the air, aiming to kick him away.

The other assassin appeared in the way, deflecting the blow. Kiba evaded his counterstrike in midair, just barely landing on his feet in time to duck away from a slashing kunai. Meanwhile, the larger assassin focused chakra in his hand, then pushed it into his chest. Watching him with her Byukagen, Hinata saw the tissue around his heart repair itself.

Shuriken from Sasuke flew at them the next instant, and they vanished before the weapons. One of the shinobi appeared directly behind Kiba, his kunai held at the Anbu's throat. The other moved somewhat slower, aiming to bash the back of Sasuke's head. His blow was caught and returned by an elbow to his stomach.

Just before Hinata could make herself move to finish him off, the other shinobi glared at her, waving his kunai at Kiba's throat dangerously. She froze in place, eyes wide. Sasuke was likewise motionless, watching carefully. Grinning, the larger assassin got up and escaped to a higher tree branch. The tension in the situation continued to rise.

Abruptly Kiba laughed. "I think I remember you," he said softly over his shoulder. "You're that Missing-nin from a few years back." His opponent's eyes narrowed angrily. "Oh, you might have dyed your hair and done something to your face, but you can't change your scent."

"It doesn't matter," the Missing-nin hissed. "I'm still going to slit your throat! What does it matter if you can smell me?"

"Well, I'm not the only one," Kiba said casually. At that moment several dogs shot from the nearby trees. Most of them plowed into the Missing-nin, knocking him backward. One dog's teeth bit into the man's wrist sharply, making him drop his kunai. Hinata found herself smiling slightly, realizing that Kiba was going to be alright- but Sasuke was already acting, and he would want her to do something as well.

The last Uchiha shifted from the shadows behind his opponent, still watching from a higher tree branch. He slid like water, sweeping the legs out from beneath his opponent easily. Hinata was up in the tree the next instant as well, her hand moving to touch her opponent's forehead.

He jerked back at the last second, avoiding what would have been a fatal blow to his brain. His body still stiffened, but even his rigid movements were enough to grab Hinata's wrist and hurl her over his head, off the tree. They both plummeted toward the forest floor...

Appearing between them on the side of the tree, Sasuke caught Hinata's wrist before she could fall and planted a kick into his opponent's back, knocking him up once more. Hinata used his hand to pull herself back to the tree, where she easily regulated her chakra to stand on the side. Sasuke was already in a fighting position.

Whirling in a violent set of slashes, the Missing-nin slashed through the underside of the dog attacking him, aiming to slice it apart. To his surprise, the large dog exploded into a rain of leaves, vanishing entirely. Getting a better grip on his weapons, the warrior tried to figure out what had happened.

"You didn't really expect Akamaru-kun to get hit by something that obvious, did you?" Kiba asked from the opposite side of the clearing. From the trees the dog emerged to stand beside him. Absent-mindedly Kiba put a hand on the dog's head. Other dogs collected around him, prowling restlessly.

_Shouldn't have given me a chance to do this,_ the Missing-nin laughed mentally. _Let's see how your dogs like the taste of raw chakra._ Dropping his kunai, he pulled his arms together into a hand seal, which he thrust in Kiba's direction the next instant. That should do the job.

At the same time he performed this attack, however, all the dogs but the one beside Kiba dissolved into ghostly forms of pure chakra. They charged at the same instant, the chakra wolves forming a v shape around Kiba and Akamaru. As they ran directly into the Missing-nin's greatest attack, they seemed to dissolve, forming a single cohesive lance that almost seemed to howl...

It struck him dead on, launching him backward and through a tree. When he fell he did not rise. Letting the chakra dogs dissipate, Kiba patted Akamaru on the head without thinking about it and removed his mask. With a grin, he set out into the forest to find the others.

Again the shinobi lashed out, narrowly missing Hinata and Sasuke, who sidestepped about the edges of the tree. He chased Hinata, flicking a kunai to his hand and trying to throw it at her. "Trying" primarily because Sasuke caught his wrist before he could fully hurl the weapon.

Immediately his opponent dropped back to touch the tree with one hand, using it to hold him in place while he kicked toward Sasuke. The Uchiha shifted back but was still hit and fell below, nearly hitting Hinata. Why had he done that? She was sure he could have dodged the blow... but she received her answer when she saw her opponent's feet flying toward her face. It seemed he intended to land back on his feet, but in the process his attack was weak, giving her a chance to help set up Sasuke's trap.

Spreading her fingers, Hinata jabbed them into the soles of her opponent's feet. Pain shot up her fingers and she worried they might break, but her hands stopped his attack. When he flipped back and his feet touched the side of the tree, no chakra bound him to the bark and he plummeted below.

Before he could fall far, Sasuke struck in the opposite direction, kicking directly up. When the shinobi's jaw met Sasuke's boot, the assassin was flung nearly back up to Hinata's level. He landed with a strange sounding snap and lay still. Breathing a sigh of relief, Hinata walked down the side of the tree to the forest floor again.

Moments later Kiba appeared from the forest, hands behind his head holding his mask, grinning broadly.

"Thanks for wrapping that up for me. I probably could have handled it," he coughed, "not like I couldn't have, but it would have been a real waste of chakra."

"What do you need it for?" Sasuke asked immediately.

"Oh... nothing important. Naruto-san's mission to a certain country I won't name at the moment."

"Then he's already sending other people?"

"Basically." Kiba's eyes narrowed, and briefly his energy and enthusiasm seemed to dissipate. "We don't know enough to strike at the core of the problem. All we can do is handle the side branches, try to topple the entire tree from the top down. What are you doing around here, anyway?"

"Naruto created an impromptu team due to unusual circumstances," Sasuke told him. Hinata continued to glance between them, glad she was being left out but still feeling severely behind the conversation. "It consists of myself, Hinata-san, Ino-san and Sakura-san. Right now, we're trying to zero in on the problem, but I shouldn't tell you any more."

"That's just as well, I don't really want to know any more. Makes my head spin as it already is." His gaze flickered to Hinata. "Hey now, you aren't getting soft, are you? I don't think I've ever seen you in Konoha for the Jounin Trials."

"I ju-just don't think I'm ready," Hinata managed to make herself say. At least she could talk around Kiba, even if he made her nervous. Years of working together had accomplished at least that much. "They sound so difficult..."

"Well, I'm not going to lie to you, they were a real bitch." Kiba smirked. "But I know what you have what it takes: you were able to keep up with me, weren't you? At least almost. Try not to be so timid and let down your hair for-"

"You aren't going to help her that way," Sasuke interrupted darkly. Hinata glanced at him, somewhat surprised; he was certainly right. Kiba's speeches had always just made her fold inward on herself. For a moment Kiba glared, but then his expression became confused, then vanished entirely. He paused for a very long time.

"You're right, I guess. Sorry. I suppose the two of you need to meet up with Sakura-san and Ino-san now, eh?"

"Sort of," Hinata said, pushing her fingers against each other. As much as she was glad to see Kiba again, she wanted just as badly to get away from him. He always made her so terribly nervous, the way he was so loud and overbearing, even more than Naruto.

"Well, then I won't keep the two of you. I've got stuff to do as well. See ya, Sasuke-kun, Hinata-chan!" With a mighty bound Kiba leapt away, Akamaru happily barking after him.

In an instant it seemed Sasuke dismissed the entire scenario and turned away, leaping to the nearest tree branch. This time Hinata was more prepared for his abrupt movement and was only a bit behind. They began flying over the forest branches swiftly, green practically flying about them.

Reflecting over what had happened, Hinata realized that she subconsciously classified people into different categories like Sasuke did. Certain people made her feel terribly uncomfortable, and made her revert to her old self more than ever before. Kiba... Sakura... Ino... even Naruto, though she knew that he really meant well. There weren't many people that didn't bother her: Neji, Shino… and Gaara, strangely enough.

Yet she couldn't get away from them, even if she had wanted to try. Very much like Sasuke, constantly pursued and never allowed the slightest bit of peace. But where she was always very obvious about how uncomfortable she was, Sasuke didn't reveal anything. For all she knew, she annoyed him just as much as Sakura and Ino. The thought put a cold feeling in the pit of her stomach.

Picking up speed just slightly, she glanced over at Sasuke. As always, he was moving swiftly and efficiently, not swerving from his path. Just above his collar, his eyes were completely focused on the path before him, nearly obscured by dark locks of hair. She couldn't tell the first thing about what he felt, if he felt anything at all.

Sighing, Hinata increased her speed and lost herself in the biting winds.

Like lightening Sakura and Ino flashed through the trees. Their movements were nearly identical, pace matched for pace, jump for jump. It was a race without being a race; they were neck in neck but neither trying to outrun the other. A slight smile appeared on Sakura's face. _It's just like old times, eh?_ Her expression was slightly mirrored by Ino's.

A corpse flew between them quite abruptly, shattering Sakura's reminiscing. Only quick footwork on their part prevented both of them from hitting the dirt. They stopped themselves and were focused upon the flying body, but they weren't nearly as fast as the shuriken that flitted between them into the body, which was knocked even further, now obviously dead.

As one they turned toward the direction the body had been flung from, and discovered that a battle was going on not far from their location. Neither had really noticed it while moving, and both berated themselves for it. Most of the warriors involved seemed to be wielding blades, which they were using in vicious slashes against an opponent wheeling amid them gracefully. One by one the warriors were dropping.

"Is it just me," Sakura asked, "or are those more samurai like the ones we killed before?"

"It isn't just you," Ino muttered. "I hate these guys."

"Um, aren't we going to help whoever is being attacked?"

"Right." Both burst from the ground, flying into the action.

Bending over backward to evade a horizontal slash, Tenten easily slid another kunai into her hand. Flipping over a blade and kicking another of the samurai away, she hurled the kunai, even as her other hand was again armed. By the time she landed, three more kunai had found their mark in her opponent's.

Once she touched the ground she swept low, and she managed to knock another opponent off his feet. Deciding she had remained in her position too long, she leapt away from it entirely, landing on the opposite side of the group. These samurai were fairly annoying... they didn't give up, and they attacked with startling speed. Worst of all, there were a few shinobi thrown into the group, but they didn't appear any different.

While tossing another kunai, Tenten noticed two figures approaching from the side. Interesting; Sakura and Ino. Their attack managed to surprise the samurai completely, and they were able to take out a few of them almost immediately. Unfortunately, they were somewhat in the way of her jutsu. Annoying, yes, but she really didn't mind the extra help.

She sensed the blade sweeping from behind her almost too late. Abruptly she hopped into the air, the blade whistling across the back of her leg. Ignoring the pain, she jumped off her opponent's face and above the group. For just a moment she was suspended over them and had a good vantage point.

One of the shinobi was raising a hand, chakra building dangerously about him; he was targeting Ino and Sakura. Before Tenten could think to call out a warning, a slashing wind burst forth. All the samurai were forced to defend against it to avoid losing their ground, but the dangerous part of the wind was solely attacking Ino and Sakura, who didn't seem aware of it.

At the last second Sakura turned. Her eyes briefly widened, but then she brought up both hands quickly in a traditional seal. Though the wind passed over Ino and Sakura, it dealt no damage to them. The shinobi glared at the suspiciously.

"How... how can-"

"I can negate jutsus," Sakura smirked. "Never seen Kage Cancel before?"

Before anyone else could answer, Tenten struck. She had used her time in the air while they were distracted to fully arm herself. Eight kunai flashed out from her; eight warriors collapsed to the ground. Just as she landed, a massive samurai rushed at her from behind, a blade swinging violently. Ino started to call out-

Tenten whirled, one hand flying so quickly it was almost invisible. A kunai exploded from her hand, going entirely through the samurai and overcoming his momentum. He collapsed backward on the ground, and the nearby samurai paused, watching her carefully.

Unfortunately for them, Tenten didn't pause. Hopefully Sakura and Ino would figure it out at this point, or at least survive. She clapped her hands together with a surge of chakra, which snaked out over the battlefield. Both of her allies noticed and leapt far away.

The next moment all the kunai and shuriken that Tenten had thrown burst into the air, spinning violently. All of them began to move at the same instant, flashing about her in a shifting shape that cut through all that it touched. Amid the storm of razor sharp weapons Tenten remained motionless, eyes closed, hands in her seal.

When the jutsu faded, the blades and the enemies dropped to the ground. Letting out her breath, Tenten let herself smile just slightly. It was over, then. Ino and Sakura both dropped to the ground again. They were trying not to look terribly impressed, she could tell. Flipping through a set of hand seals, Tenten recalled her kunai. Each was tugged toward her, dragging along the ground until she could pick them up and replace them within her pouches.

"Not bad at all," Ino finally said. Tenten just nodded to her.

"It looks like you really didn't need our help," Sakura commented, glancing around the devastated field. "Sort of wasted our time then, I guess."

"Oh, it made things go a bit quicker," Tenten told her, straightening. "What are you guys doing around here, anyway?"

"Special mission," Ino told her smugly. "Sasuke-kun is leading a team of four to a city. It has to do with the big problem... do you know about that?"

"I think the question is how much _you_ know," Tenten answered. "What information do you have?"

"You know about this?" Sakura asked.

"Lee-kun told me everything. But no one really knows what's going on for certain, unless Sasuke-san's mission panned out."

"I think it did," Sakura told her. "He isn't talking very much."

"Well, that's like him."

"This is probably going to be a long mission," Ino mused. "It's nice to be able to be with Sasuke-kun for so long... except that Sakura-chan is here."

"I was thinking similar thoughts," Sakura glowered. "Just add your name..."

"Wow," Tenten commented, scratching the back of her head with a kunai casually. "Just... wow."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Ino and Sakura demanded.

"I'm just… surprised. But never mind. You probably have to get back to your mission soon, right?" Her eyes flickered closed as she sensed two energies approaching. "Sasuke-san and someone else are coming this way."

"Ah, so they finished." Ino and Sakura waved goodbye to Tenten hastily and darted into the trees, matching pace with each other. Behind them, Tenten gazed after the two for some time. Finally she laughed softly, shouldered her pack and vanished into the prairie, shaking her head.

* * *

I am glad that Chouji was appreciated; I enjoyed writing that portion of the chapter.Yes, all of the other former Genin will make an appearance at one point or another.

The Gandhara: Hm, miscommunication. What you described as the "problem with Sakura and Ino" is what I termed as them being annoyed. Same problem, different names. Personally, I don't feel that if they haven't grown up in respect to Sasuke they should have grown up at all (it doesn't make logical sense to me, anyway), but I realized in hindsight that this was a mistake. Also: yes, I'll agree that fighting outweighs direct plot, but if at this point you feel there haven't been any hints into the plot, you actually have missed things.

keebler-elmo: I believe a quick reread should answer most of your questions.


	11. Precipice

I fear that I must again apologize for the delay. My situation is not likely to become better soon, but hopefully I should be able to continue to update without incident for at least a few chapters. As usual, assorted responses follow this chapter.

* * *

Chapter Eleven: Precipice 

Frantically Hinata focused around herself, trying to pinpoint the exact location of the attack. She could always see it coming, but the attacks were always so blindingly fast that it was difficult to avoid them. Abruptly something flashed at the back of her vision.

Whirling, she managed to get both her hands before her face to guard against the kick. It forced her back some distance, but this time she was able to block the secondary kick with her knee. Instead of pressing his attack, Sasuke used the impact to leap away. He landed some distance away and then straightened, indicating the training session was over. Ino and Sakura emerged from the trees.

"You have all improved," Sasuke commented without looking at any of them. "You'll need endurance in the situations we'll be in. Hinata-san, your resistance to hard style martial arts is improving. Using a soft style is fine, but you have to be able to take your opponent's blows as well. Sakura-san and Ino-san: you've done well actually working; I appreciate it."

"Um, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura stopped him just before he left entirely. "Which of us would you say improved more, me or Ino-chan?"

"Yeah," Ino chimed in. "Which of us is better?"

Briefly Sasuke glanced back at them over his shoulder. His expression was difficult to understand, but Hinata thought she could read it now. Part of him seemed vaguely disappointed, part of him was amused, and the rest of him was disgusted. The next instant his eyes became hard and cold.

"I'd say you're even," he told them flatly, vanishing into the shadows of the trees. The instant he was gone, Ino and Sakura glowered at each other.

"Humph, even indeed," Sakura scoffed. "I am _not_ even with a pig like you."

"He's just too shy to admit he likes me better," Ino smirked at her. "We both know he likes me more."

"As if!"

"Oh yeah? Well-"

"Um." The word was spoken timidly and not anywhere near the volume they had been arguing. But it had been said by Hinata, and she had actually interrupted someone. This fact was enough to make both Sakura and Ino stop talking and stare at Hinata with blank expressions. She immediately began fidgeting.

"Um, I don't think Sasuke really likes y-you or anyone else," Hinata forced herself to say. Oh, why had she said anything? She had just wanted to make them stop bothering Sasuke, and somehow she was actually speaking. It was too late to go back now, though... "I... I think he'd rather just be a warrior."

"That's ridiculous!"

"If he doesn't like us," Ino demanded, "then who does he like?"

"I-it isn't like th-"

"Yeah, who does he like? You?"

Immediately Hinata blushed and shrank away. Ino and Sakura laughed and turned away from her toward the camp. They both found the mere thought so funny that it dissolved the tension that had formerly been hanging in the air. For the moment, they even forgot about the argument and returned to camp cheerfully.

About to follow them, Hinata froze. Behind her, in the trees above, she saw Sasuke. He was standing on a large branch, looking down at the scene with blazing eyes. She was certain of it; he was intensely annoyed. Forcing herself to keep moving, Hinata gulped. The last thing she wanted to do was annoy Sasuke; she had been trying to hard not to, but now...

When she collected her nerve enough to glance back at the trees, Sasuke was gone.

* * *

"There is a town in five kilometers," Sasuke said slowly. He was the first person to have spoken for some time, so the other three immediately glanced at him. They were mostly getting ready for the night. Sasuke was sitting on a log, stoking the fire with a long stick contemplatively. "We will need to get supplies there, but there is something more important to be done." 

He glanced up at each of them in turn significantly. "From this point forth, we will be actively engaging the enemy. If Shikamaru-san's theory was at all correct, this town will contain something very important to the enemy. I would not expect us to be attacked directly, but we will be watched the entire time.

"There will be no more training. Sleep well tonight, because we won't be able to for quite a while. They might send other shinobi to fight us, but more likely we'll have to watch for poison or single-stroke assassinations. We don't have any room to make mistakes."

"Is it really that dangerous?" Ino asked.

"I don't know," Sasuke answered darkly. "There seems to be an unnatural concentration about this town, of a variety of forces. Because there is something unusual there, I have reason to suspect there will be greater opposition. But we don't know anything for certain; it could be a death trap or completely harmless."

"I know almost every poison in existence," Sakura pointed out brightly. Sasuke's gaze merely flickered at her.

"While we're in town, we're adopting a new formation. Ino-san, you look for any long range attacks; Sakura-san, check for all the subtler methods of attacking; Hinata-san... if anyone suspicious comes close, strike without hesitation. Most attacks will probably primarily target me, so I want you close by at all times."

Hinata abruptly drew in her breath, drawing her arms closer to herself despite her best efforts not to. This wasn't going to bode well; Sakura and Ino were going to be on her in an instant. True, it was the most efficient set up, but it would put her directly in between the two of them. "B-but..."

"Well, Hinata-chan seems awfully nervous," Sakura said, eyes venomous. "Don't you think, Ino-chan?"

"Very much so," Ino agreed, glancing at Hinata suspiciously. "Why do you think she reacted like that?"

"Could it be... because she has a crush on Sasuke?"

"N-No, that isn-"

"Oh really? Then why-"

An extremely loud crack interrupted her statement; Sasuke's stick had shattered apart in his hand. Startled, everyone looked toward him. He rose to his feet, dropped pieces of the stick into the fire spitefully and turned away. His aura was spread tightly around the entire camp, muting everyone within it. On the edge of the fire's light, he glanced over his shoulder at them. Darkness obscured his eyes.

"She is a friend," he said, slowly and succinctly. "That is all. Perhaps the two of you have something to learn from her." With that, he vanished entirely, his presence slipping away from them in an instant.

Silence reigned over the camp until the fire had almost entirely died away. Sakura and Ino frequently shot glares at Hinata that she pretended she didn't see. In reality, she barely saw them anyway. Sasuke had seemed so terribly unhappy, and it was mostly her fault. If she had been able to stop them...

The other two eventually lay down, and Hinata followed suit. For a long time she remained there on her back, staring up at the leaves blankly. There was no way she was going to be able to sleep, not now, not after that. She managed to resist the urge to fidget or move for a very long time. Eventually she heard light snoring.

Slipping out of her bedroll, Hinata padded into the forest. By this point the moon had risen, and it cast everything in an unreal light. She came into a clearing eventually, and continued on through. Reaching the middle, she stopped and glanced up at the sky. It was a very clear night; all the stars were shining brightly.

"I-I'm sorry, Sasuke-san." He seemed to materialize out of the shadows, leaning against a tree behind her. As usual, his expression couldn't be seen even slightly, and his eyes betrayed nothing of his feelings. "I didn't... I didn't want them to do that. If I could have, I would have done something to stop them, but I couldn't. I'm always so scared... scared of them... scared of everybody." He began walking toward her, eyes blank, and she gasped. "Oh, I'm sorry. I shouldn't talk about myself."

"Don't insult yourself." His tone was dark, but she realized it wasn't angry. Surprised, she turned to face him.

"O-okay." She paused, unsure of what to say. His eyes were still completely unreadable. "Do... do I annoying you like they do? I was trying not to, but I don't think I'm doing very well..." her voice trailed off, and she began mentally cursing herself for bringing up the subject. Why did she have to say that? Why-

And then she realized Sasuke was smiling. His cloak wasn't entirely fastened, leaving his collar open enough that she could see his face. It was just a slight smile, but abruptly she realized how silly she was being. That smile erased all her tormented thoughts instantly.

"No," he told her eventually. "You do not annoy me. I would have put our inner-coils fighter closest to me in any case... but I'm glad this is the way things are. I can trust you."

Blinking, Hinata didn't respond. Inwardly she breathed a sigh of relief. Then she wasn't as bad as she thought after all. Sasuke's smile had vanished, but its effect was still quite present. After a moment he reached inside his cloak and produced a scroll. He handed it to her silently.

She took it wordlessly. It had once been heavily sealed by chakra, but the seals had been broken. The moon was bright enough that she could read the words on it. It was addressed to Sasuke. Wondering, she glanced back up at him.

"What is this?"

"Very important information." Sasuke folded his arms, his eyes shifting to something entirely elsewhere. "Shikamaru-san gave it to me."

"I... I don't think I've ever seen this before."

"You haven't. I'm the only one who has. No one else needed to know, so Temari-san made sure I was the only one who got the information. But at this point it's for the best that you're aware."

Nodding absentmindedly, Hinata did her best to quickly read over the letter. As she did so, she paled slightly. The instant she reached the closing, she glanced back up at him.

"This means..."

"Yes." He nodded in assent. "What they said about a world-wide attack on Leaf Shinobi isn't true. _Every_ shinobi is being attacked, regardless of what nation they come from. Even some extremely small villages have been attacked. We're dealing with something far larger than an attack on one country."

"Is this everything?" Hinata asked, rolling the scroll back up. "Do we know anything new?"

"Not much. Our enemy appears to be a collection of hundreds of different warriors, from every nation and discipline. Why they're gathering, we don't know. What we do know, now, is that they appear to be being commanded from several locations. We're moving toward the most important of these locations... but I don't know what we'll find."

"Aren't the other villages doing something?"

"Yes, but most people can't focus their energy anywhere. So far, each Kage has contacted the others. They've all been working to defend their own nation from the attackers. But whoever this is, they have a lot of manpower and a lot of funds. The only way to end the problem is to strike at the source... whatever that is.

"This mission is a combination of many different villages. Most of the intelligence was gathered by Stone, those in Sand compiled it. The lot fell to us to actually strike. Once we've determined what the threat is, we can strike in full. Until then, we have to make sure we only use our power judiciously."

"I see." Hinata took a deep breath to try to calm down. "This is a lot bigger than I thought it was."

"Yes. It is. But for now, get some rest. Tomorrow is going to be rough."

* * *

When they reached the edge of town, Sasuke immediately slowed to a pace that could be considered normal for most humans. He'd been running lightly for the beginning of the day, so that all of them would be at full strength if they ran into any serious opposition. 

The group was very quiet, mostly from the incident the night before. Still, when they actually entered the city, everyone was on edge. For a moment, all thoughts of rivalry were set aside. A short moment, true, but briefly all of them were nothing but shinobi.

It was fairly early, so they were basically the only people on the streets. The few people that they did pass generally nodded in a friendly manner or just stared at them. Obviously a fairly small and trusting town, then. Ino glanced about it with a slight air of disgust... there didn't seem to be anything at all worthwhile in the place. She hated backwater towns.

A whistling noise caught her off guard, and she caught a flash of the sunlight reflecting off something metal. Sasuke calmly raised a hand, catching three long needles between his fingers. There was a dangerous pause, but no further attacks came. Sasuke broke the weapons in his fingers and shook his head.

"Gone. As I suspected, they won't try to attack us directly."

"Is it going to be like this all the time?" Sakura asked.

"This is actually lighter than I expected," he answered darkly. "Our biggest problem in the city will be determining what we should do next. In this case, our opponents are not completely defined; there is nothing to specifically target. I doubt information will be easy to find, either."

"We could ask someone," Sakura suggested.

"As if," Ino muttered. "Do you really think that people are just going to give us information like that?"

"I didn't mean that! But the enemy has probably come to the town recently. This seems like a small place, and they probably remember who moved in lately."

"She has a point," Sasuke cut off Ino's response. "This isn't the time to bicker."

He continued walking at a faster rate that forced the rest of them to hurry to keep up. Eventually they came upon a man setting up shop, evidently to sell apples. Sasuke nodded slightly and moved toward him. The others hung back to let him ask questions alone.

"Good morning," Sasuke greeted with a great deal more than his usual impassiveness.

"Mornin'," the man replied, not glancing up. "If you want to buy apples, you'll have to wait just a minute; I ain't set up yet."

"We're in no hurry," Sasuke answered amiably. "This is a nice town you have here."

"We do what we can," the vendor grunted, pushing a crate into position. "You from out-of-town?"

"Quite a bit out, yes. I was curious about something, though, and I thought you seemed like the type who would know. Has anyone moved into this town recently? Any individuals or corporations?"

"Why do you want to know?" the man snapped suspiciously, freezing in mid-movement. He glanced up at them and his eyes widened. "Please don't kill me." His eyes were wide and his hands were shaking slightly. Hinata blinked in surprise.

"We aren't interested in hurting anyone," Sasuke answered levelly. "I just want a bit of information."

"Oh... yer some of them Leaf peoples, ain't ya?" the man realized, letting out a huge breath. "Then I guess you have bigger problems then a little old apple-seller like me."

"I could use your help, though. Has anyone come into town recently? Especially anyone suspicious?"

"A few, yeah. I think I know who you want, though. Go down the street a ways, turn and then go right on your next street. There's a little hospital there, you can't miss it."

"And it recently arrived?" Sasuke raised an eyebrow. Some distance away, Sakura and Ino began muttering to each other about something Hinata couldn't hear.

"Naw, it's been there for ages. But it's always been empty, until this new fella came into town. Everybody just calls him Doctor Matthew. He's a likeable enough guy, and he helps out with the sick folks, but all of this is probably his fault."

"All of what?"

"Oh, don't listen to me," the apple seller grumbled. "I'm just a paranoid old man. But it seems like things have been a lot rougher since he came into town. Now, are you gonna buy any apples, or what?"

"Thank you for your assistance," Sasuke said, gracefully sliding something golden into the man's hand. They quickly exchanged, and then Sasuke moved back to the group. Without speaking he instantly began walking again.

"This might not be as difficult as I expected," Sasuke told them, once they were out of hearing range. "It seems that our opponents are not as subtle as they have been in the past. Of course, this could be a false lead, but I have a strange feeling this doctor is not exactly who he appears to be."

"That guy mentioned something about him helping people here," Sakura muttered. "Who moves to a backwater town just to help people? That's weird, and that alone makes me suspicious."

"Does anyone want the apple?" Sasuke asked off hand, sliding it into his hand. Immediately Sakura and Ino grabbed at it, neither getting a grip on it. Before they could fight over it Sasuke made a flashing movement, cleanly slicing the apple in half. Both of them snatched a piece and held it possessively.

They continued walking without speaking for some distance, following the vendor's directions. As he had stated, it was nearly impossible to miss the old hospital. For one, it was larger than most of the other buildings, and blocky in an older style. There was a massive medical logo on the front. Most obviously, it was the only building within sight that wasn't a private home. It struck Hinata as a nice, home-like kind of place, though.

As they neared the door, Sasuke held up a hand to indicate they should stop.

"Remove any weapons. If you have on a flak jacket, take it off. It doesn't need to be obvious that we're shinobi."

In a few minutes, the four of them looked much less like a team of assassins, and more like a rag-tag group of people just wandering through. Apparently satisfied by what he saw, Sasuke turned away and moved to the hospital without hesitation, moving through the doorway without knocking.

Immediately they found themselves in a small foyer. It appeared to be in poor repair, but was extremely clean given the circumstances. Sasuke didn't pay it any mind and moved into a larger room. This one was fairly like most ordinary hospitals' waiting rooms; it was new to most of them, as they had rarely seen ordinary hospitals.

At the moment it was empty, save for a man sitting at a desk on the opposite side. He was focused on several papers at his desk, writing swiftly. His face wasn't visible, but they could see he had light blond hair that fell about his head lazily. The white coat he was wearing made it fairly obvious he was a doctor, or at least someone who thought he was one.

"Welcome," he said, cutting off Sakura just before she could announce their presence. "I'm filing an order at the moment, but I'll be able to be with you momentarily. You can take a seat, if you like."

"That's callous," Ino muttered to Sakura. "What if we had life-threatening injuries?"

"None of you walk like a person heavily injured or carrying a person heavily injured," the man answered, without looking up or slowing his writing even slightly. Ino gulped, surprised that he had heard her. Sasuke's eyes were slightly narrow, and he stepped a bit closer to the desk.

Setting aside his paper, the man glanced up for the first time. He was a lot younger than Hinata had expected; a strangely handsome man of a nationality she hadn't seen before. Glancing at each of them, including her, the man smiled kindly and extended a hand. After blinking for a moment, Sasuke shook it.

"My name is Matthew," the man explained. "If you want to be really formal you could call me Doctor Matthew. Yes, I do run a practice here. However, none of you appears to be injured. What can I do for y-" he cut off abruptly and paused for just a moment. "Are you allied with Konoha or renegade?"

The abruptness of the question startled all of them. "How do you know we're shinobi?" Sasuke snapped.

"Simple." Matthew readjusted his glasses on his face. "All of you carry yourselves like warriors. You begin to move toward a weapons pouch at times but halt almost immediately. When you walk, you do so without making real noise. The only shinobi permitted to be in this nation are of Hidden Leaf. This naturally eliminates every possibility but those I asked about."

Ino and Sakura just gaped. Hinata's eyes were wide, and she began fidgeting.

"To complete your analysis," Sasuke spoke first, "we are allied with Konoha. Who are you?"

"I have hardly been indistinct regarding myself." Matthew shrugged.

"Then why do you know such about shinobi?"

"I have studied the field extensively," the doctor returned evenly. "My education has been a great deal broader than merely the practice of medicine. But the game of questions can be played by two. Why are you here? Or am I not cleared for that?"

"It does not concern you," Sasuke told him firmly. "We are merely looking for something."

"Unless it is of a mundane nature, I fear I shall be entirely useless to you. I ensure that I do not know anything more than what is necessary for me." Just then, the door opened behind them. Everyone glanced in that direction and found a mother carrying a crying little girl. She was clutching her hand and whimpering.

"Tami just cut her hand," the woman explained. "It isn't too deep, but if you could look at it..."

"Certainly." Matthew was already on his feet. On his way to the girl he snagged a roll of bandages from his desk. Just before he reached her he froze for a moment, then turned to the four shinobi.

"There are foreign organizations with stock in the Maringot hotel. If you have any reason to suspect that you are being threatened, I would not eat anything they give you." His words were soft and barely audible to them. The next instant he moved to the little girl and began speaking soothingly.

After glancing at Sasuke and Ino nervously, Sakura shrugged and moved toward the door. Soon they were out on the street again, no further than they had been before.

"He just seemed like a really nice guy," Ino commented. "I guess that lead didn't take us anywhere."

"He's dangerous," Sasuke said darkly.

"Dangerous?" Sakura wondered. "I didn't sense any chakra from him at all."

"Not like that. He's smart. Very smart." The Uchiha's eyes were narrow, focused on something else. "I'm not sure if I trust him, but for now we'd just be wasting our time here. If he really is an enemy, he has the moral high ground for the moment. Let's look elsewhere first."

The search proved long and fruitless. No one seemed to know anything, though they were far more friendly now that the four were not obviously shinobi. Everyone said only good things about Doctor Matthew, and said that no one else had moved in recently. Nothing new turned up.

At the same time, they were attacked periodically throughout the day. Generally it was in the form of needles, which Sakura determined were poisoned. They were always thrown from afar, and the opponent immediately vanished when the attack failed. The attacks came very rarely, only when they were at their most distracted. None of them actually struck, and eventually they managed to lose their pursuers entirely by slipping through a crowded market under an illusion.

Night was falling when Sasuke determined their work was over. Once darkness had covered most of the town, they had begun moving stealthily to avoid any further pursuit. In a narrow alleyway, he finally stopped and shook his head.

"There's no point in making this drag on any longer," he said simply. "Let's find somewhere to stay and use different tactics tomorrow."

"There was a hotel just a few blocks back," Ino pointed out.

"No. Not the Maringot. I trust Matthew-san enough for that, at least. There are two other places of lodging. Follow me." Drawing his cloak around himself, Sasuke slipped back into the shadows. Ino and Sakura immediately slid after him. Swallowing, Hinata followed the others, leaving the alley empty.

* * *

Regarding Kage Cancel: the word "kage" has a definition that can apply to almost any technique (I believe the Third Hokage has an additional "kage" jutsu, used against Orochimaru). As for the technique itself: it operates as does the normal canceling technique, simply by negating the chakra that would do actual harm to the user. So while the opponent still crafted their attack, the part that would have damaged Sakura was negated prior to reaching her. However, it is significantly more difficult to "block" a ninjutsu as opposed to a genjutsu, so I added the suffix. 

As I have said before, all the old Genin will eventually appear... including Rock Lee. However, you'll have to be patient in this case.


	12. Mutual Agendas

In addition to the usual general responses, there is one note following the chapter I would appreciate anyone who intends to review to read (it is the first paragraph following the last page break).

* * *

Chapter Twelve: Mutual Agendas

When she first sat up, Hinata couldn't help but yawn. Yesterday had been tiring, and in an unusual way. She had been given first watch, so she had slept very soundly until morning. But now she felt rested enough to do whatever they had to do today.

Getting up, she padded to the door of her room soundlessly. It was an extremely small place, a single story inn with only a few rooms. But for their purposes, it was good enough, though the four of them took up every bed available. At the moment it was quite early, so no one else seemed to be awake.

The back door opened noiselessly, and Hinata discovered that the building had a small back yard. Not very common, in the city. There were a few trees and a swing that looked as though it had been heavily used. Somehow, she just couldn't see this place offering a serious threat. Everything had been completely and totally normal, expect for their encounter with Doctor Matthew. She wasn't willing to believe he was evil, though; something about him seemed trustworthy.

She moved to one of the trees, the dewy grass very cold on her feet. They were at the very northern edges of Fire Country, she realized. If they went much further they would be in another nation, and there could actually be snow. Before she could continue that line of thought much further her stomach growled.

An apple fell down beside her, startling her enough that she barely caught it. Puzzled, she glanced up. This wasn't an apple tree... but Sasuke was sitting on a higher branch of it, levitating a group of leaves in a strange spherical pattern. He didn't look at her even slightly, but she knew it had been him. Smiling timidly, she took her first bite of the apple.

"Today we're going back to the hospital," Sasuke told her. "That doctor has a few more questions to answer. If all goes well, we might not have to be here long."

"Why is that?" Hinata asked.

"Originally I suspected that there was a troop focal point here because they had one of their organizational axes in the town. Now, I'm pretty sure that's not the case. But there is some reason why there are so many opponents here, and I need to find out why that is before we go."

"Hmm." Hinata merely continued to enjoy the apple, having nothing to add.

"It's a beautiful morning, Hinata-san," Sasuke commented. She nearly choked on her apple, but managed to hide the reaction. That sort of comment was completely unlike him... something wasn't right. Her eyes narrowed unconsciously. "I like just watching everything. What do you think?"

"It's v-very beautiful," Hinata answered, activating her Byukagen noiselessly. "Everything is just so quiet. I think I see two birds on the tree by the house that will start singing soon, though."

There was a momentary pause, then a clash of metal upon metal. Two massive shuriken went hurtling from the tree toward Hinata. Fully suspecting something of the sort, she wove to the left of the first one and put her hand through the hole in the middle of the second. It spun to a halt harmlessly.

Tightening her grip on it, Hinata prepared to throw it herself if a secondary attack was launched. Nothing happened, however, and she focused her vision through the leaves of the tree by the house. Sasuke was balanced on one of the branches, holding one body by the neck and the other by the leg. Moments later he vanished, to appear directly beside her.

"Poison capsules," he explained darkly. "Both died before I could knock them out."

"Do... do you think they attacked the Sakura-chan and Ino-chan, too?"

"Probably. These assassins don't seem to be worth much after a few seconds, so we won't be much help, but we can see what we can do." Lowering his hands, Sasuke aimed them at the two bodies. There was a surge of chakra, and both dissolved without a trace. Without comment he moved back toward the small hotel.

* * *

Sighing heavily, Sakura ran the brush through her hair one more time. All this travel was beginning to wear down on it, and it wasn't shining as properly as it should. Curse Ino for having naturally blond hair, it had so much more natural shine than hers ever would. One of these times, she had to take a complete bath.

She jerked the brush before her face just in time for a kunai to bury itself in midway through the plastic. Turning, she saw a black-clad man in the corner of her room and another kunai flying toward her. Knocking it aside with her other hand, she hurled her brush across the room. It carried enough momentum that her opponent was knocked over backward.

Before she could attack further, though, he bit down on something and slumped the next second. Sighing, Sakura picked up her ruined hairbrush and glanced around the room. How was she going to explain this one?

* * *

Still half asleep, Ino rolled over in bed and put her pillow over her head. She didn't want to wake up, not yet. The next instant she heard a whistling and jolted into action, though not fast enough.

Two needles slicing at her barely bit through the edge of her shoulder. She winced in pain and turned, trying to pull a kunai. Immediately she remembered that she had left her pack by the side of the bed, but she had more immediate problems, such as the katana point flying toward her forehead, as a dark-clad warrior thrust the blade toward her.

Before it reached her, a hand clamped down on the warrior's wrist with a crunching noise. Sasuke jerked the assassin off his feet and immediately struck for a pressure point on his neck. As he did so, however, the warrior smirked and bit down hard on something. By the time he hit the ground he was dead.

"Very fanatical," Sasuke murmured, still looking down at the body. "How strange..."

He glanced to Ino and discovered that she was still on the bed. His eyes narrowed the next moment, as he realized that she was slumped unnaturally. Walking to the bed he grabbed her collar and pulled her up. Instantly his gaze shifted to the wound at her shoulder, on which was a lavender liquid. Ino's eyes were closed and she was barely breathing.

"P-poison?" Hinata asked from behind him; she was shocked at Ino's almost lifeless appearance. He nodded grimly, examining the surface wound. At that point, the doorknob shifted, and both of them immediately glanced to it. Sakura entered the next instant and discovered Sasuke holding Ino. She nearly yelped, but recovered just before she did so.

"You were attacked as well, I presume?" Sasuke asked. Sakura nodded.

"Is Ino-chan alright?" she asked immediately. Her eyes actually seemed frantic, almost desperate.

"She was grazed by a poisoned weapon. I think it's endsbane, but I can't be certain..."

"It is," Sakura assured him instantly. Nodding curtly, Sasuke shifted Ino. With vicious efficiency he sucked the poison from her shoulder and then spat out a red and lavender liquid. Raising one hand to her shoulder, he closed his eyes and focused. Chakra flickered, nearly visible, and Ino gave a slight cry of pain while unconscious. When Sasuke removed his hand, however, her wound no longer had a strange color to it. Gently Sasuke set her on the bed, then he straightened.

"It was spreading very slowly, so I hope the wound was cleansed by my chakra," Sasuke told them. "First, clean up all evidence of our battles. Make sure you destroy all the attacker's weapons, unless you can get some information from them. We won't stay here again; it is no longer safe."

"What about Ino?" Sakura asked.

"Wait for her to wake up. As soon as she does, we're going. I need to check something. Stay here and don't make anyone suspicious." With that he opened the door, stepped into the hallway and vanished entirely. There was a nervous pause in his absence; Hinata found a chair and sat down, putting her hands in her lap quietly, still trying to come to grips with how close to death they had been. Sakura was standing beside Ino, watching her carefully.

"The nerve of that girl," Sakura was muttering. "I'll bet she let herself be injured just so she could get Sasuke to... ugh! Not a bad idea, though..."

Watching her, Hinata couldn't help but smile just slightly. For now, things were going to be alright.

* * *

Not a sound was made when Sasuke entered. He edged the door open just far enough for the slightly squeaky hinge to not make any noise, then slipped inside with superhuman speed. His feet touched the soft carpet noiselessly, sandals barely pushing it down. Both his aura and scent were neutralized.

"Hello, Mr. Shinobi."

"Hello, Matthew-san," Sasuke said after a slight pause. The doctor still hadn't looked up, shuffling through a folder of papers absent-mindedly. After a moment he had to ask. "How did you know?"

"Whenever that door moves it creates a slight draft. There wasn't any noise made, which is unusual, so I knew it must be someone with shinobi training. Because there wasn't an immediate attack, I knew it had to be one of you four. In terms of the gender of my respective prefix… well, perhaps I should not explain everything."

"I see." Sasuke paused, folding his arms. The waiting room was empty, which was fortuitous. By this point he was suspicious of anyone, and the last thing he needed was information leaking elsewhere.

"You have questions for me, I trust?" Matthew sighed and set down his pen. When he glanced up it was obvious he wasn't looking for an answer.

"You have a connection to someone," Sasuke stated flatly. "No ordinary person can speak about shinobi like you do. What is it?"

"For some time, there have been assassins coming after me. I moved to this small town in an effort to evade them."

"Why?"

Sighing once more, Matthew pushed his glasses up his face. "I do not know."

After raising an eyebrow, Sasuke let the question go. There were more important things to be dealt with. "Have you been attacked in this town?"

"No. There have been shinobi following me, but they have been unsuccessful... as should be fairly obvious." It seemed as though Matthew was about to say more, but he paused instead. "Were you attacked? I take it you are drawing fire as well."

"We were," Sasuke answered cautiously. This conversation was making him nervous, and he really didn't like to be nervous. In a battle of information, he wasn't sure he'd come out the victor if Matthew was his opponent. Of course, he wasn't even certain who his opponent really was. Nothing he said could be trusted.

"I realize that you have no reason to trust me," Matthew admitted the next moment. "But I think both of us realize that we do not need to trust each other."

"Then why did you give us advice earlier?" Sasuke demanded. It would be interesting to see how this question as answered. He was making an intellectual attack, as the doctor surely knew.

"To be frank, I'd like the four of you out of my life as soon as possible. Ideally I'd like to remain here, but the longer opposing forces remain in this town the more concentrated assassins will become. I cannot escape them indefinitely."

"Presuming that is your true goal, would you be willing to do anything to facilitate our leaving?"

"If possible, yes." Matthew paused. "I take it you are looking for some manner of information. This could not be gathered from this assassins of this morning, correct?"

"They killed themselves."

"As is to be expected. I would suggest that you make yourselves conspicuous and wait to neutralize the first assassin that attempts to strike you. A counter-ambush, if you will. A non-fatal area technique would probably serve your purpose nicely. However, I would hope you would do so some distance from my practice: if I can avoid undue notice I would appreciate it."

For a moment Sasuke brooded over the advice, gaze unreadable in the shadow of his hair. Unperturbed, Matthew began filling out a prescription. A moment passed, then Sasuke nodded.

"Very well. Outside of unusual circumstances, I will return here."

"Use my office," Matthew told him. "There is a window in the back that should serve your purpose much better." Acknowledging the statement slightly, Sasuke swept toward the door. He stopped with the door half open, glancing over his shoulder.

"Why a doctor?"

"It's my training," Matthew answered simply. Then he smiled slightly. "But if you want a more philosophical answer... there are enough killers in the world. What we need is healers."

"True." With that stark word Sasuke vanished entirely.

* * *

There was an uncomfortable silence when Sasuke returned and announced that they would be doing basically nothing that day. Sakura's first thought was that he was being nice, Ino began to wonder why they would spend a day relaxing and Hinata got nervous about the possible consequences of such. As usual.

"There _is_ a good reason," Sasuke sighed, interrupting them. "Today we are trying to cause another attack on us. This time, make sure they don't have time to kill themselves. We need information more than anything at this point. Make sure this day isn't wasted; keep as alert as possible while making yourself a target."

"So we get an entire day around the town?"

Sasuke's eyes narrowed just slightly. "Yes, if you insist. We're leaving in ten minutes. Do anything you want to do before then."

As soon as Sasuke was out the door, off to some unknown business, as usual, Sakura and Ino flew into action around Hinata, who carefully backed to a wall to avoid being injured. Nothing was going to get between them and getting ready for an entire day relaxing with Sasuke.

Sitting down on the bed, Hinata just stared at the carpet for a moment. She wasn't looking forward to this. Ino and Sakura would be present all day. They were more serious than they pretended to be; if there was an actual threat, they would be alert and ready to face it. But if they were not in a dangerous situation, they would probably spend even more time nagging Sasuke. That would annoy him, which would just depress her, even if she didn't accidentally get in their way.

She forced herself to move, slowly removing her weaponry and forehead protector. Personally, she doubted that their attackers would be more likely to attack due to it, but she might as well contribute what she could. Her jacket contained pouches up the sleeves that could hold a few kunai that could be pulled out at will. She loaded both of these and left the rest of her weapons with her pack. It was a lot easier for her to go incognito, because her primary weapon was her hands in any case.

"I know that it's just a tactical decision," Sakura was commenting, "but we're still getting an entire day off."

"Yeah! I really hope that they don't decide to attack until later, so we get the full day. Whenever they do though, I'll be really ticked at them for interrupting my time with Sasuke."

"Your time?"

Ino merely stuck her tongue out, and Sakura glared. Sighing, Hinata started to get to her feet, realized that she had nowhere to go, and just rested back on the bed. Her presence had already been nearly forgotten by the other two, and she just listened to their conversation with her eyes lightly closed.

"I warn you, Ino-pig, keep away from Sasuke-kun today!"

"You're worried about me? I'll be with you every second!"

"Humph. It isn't like you even really like him?"

"Like him? I love Sasuke-kun!" Ino crossed her arms. "You just think you like him. More of a school girl crush than anything."

"Did you really say love?" Sakura shot back. "Can you really even understand what that means?"

"More than you!"

Hinata stopped listening to their conversation, completely adrift in her own thoughts. Both of them were so focused, so driven. They knew exactly what they thought about Sasuke, and wouldn't be driven from it for anything; both of them said they loved him. Sighing again, Hinata wondered what position she was in. She certainly hoped she was Sasuke's friend. But what did she really think? It had been so long since she had even thought in those terms... after she realized how she really felt about Naruto, she had only had friends, people who made her uncomfortable and enemies.

It felt like only a few moments before Sasuke returned, but when Hinata opened her eyes she realized that Sakura and Ino were ready. She was in a strange mood and knew it, but couldn't shake herself out of it. As they left she followed in a slight daze. For all of her training, a day off was one thing she wasn't prepared for.

* * *

A request for my reviewers: the issue of Sakura and Ino's maturity (or lack thereof) has been discussed before, and in some venues for pages. I am aware of this, I regret it to a certain degree, and it will not remain constant. If you have something new to say, such as advice or a specific criticism, feel free to mention it, but otherwise I would appreciate this element being largely unmentioned.

Laundry Detergent: Your comments were appreciated, as I hope this update will be.

As I said before, it will be quite some time before Rock Lee's appearance. However, it will be somewhat extensive when it does occur. Naruto isn't done in this story either.

Regarding criticism of my Sasuke: I can't say that I agree with your impression of the original Sasuke or of my own character, at least as I understood what you wrote. He isn't cold hearted, merely far more serious due to what has happened to him in the years following the Naruto series.

Matthew's nationality at this point is intentionally an unknown. If you are just curious about his appearance, think vaguely Indian facial construction with a slightly pale skin tint.


	13. A Day Off by Any Other Name

At long last my computer situation has stabilized. I see no reason why I should not be able to continue providing chapters on a biweekly basis, outside of a major disaster. My apologies for this somewhat lengthy delay. Those who reviewed chapter twelve with questions will have them answered now, at the end of the chapter as usual.

* * *

Chapter Thirteen: A Day Off by Any Other Name…

They moved around town quite a bit, went to a lot of places and did a lot of things. None of it really got through to Hinata. The outer shell of her mind prevented her from accidentally wandering into a door and stayed ready for an attack, but the rest of it was decidedly absent. Only Sasuke really noticed, but after one curious glance he did nothing.

Of course, he was the cause of her confusion. Where did she stand in regard to him? Was she even in a position to know? How did anyone ever know anything about this, for that matter? It wasn't really anything like what she had felt for Naruto, but nothing like her best friends, either. If only Shino were here... Shino would know. He could probably make things clearer for her in a sentence or two, then return to being silent.

But no, she had to do this herself. Perhaps it was better this way. If she couldn't know herself, who could? It was during this thought that she realized they hadn't been moving for some time. She knew they were in a park of some sort, but she finally took the time to look at it for something other than tactical purposes.

When she looked, she discovered the park was a beautiful place. It seemed to be fairly small, but a canopy of leaves made it seem as though they were in the middle of the forests back home. The light that reached them was slightly green from reflecting through the leaves. Sasuke first sat down on a park bench and spread his arms out to the either side of him; when Sakura and Ino both tried to slip in front of either arm he retracted them and crossed his arms.

She was sitting on a bench on the opposite side, her back to the other three. They had been speaking for some time, and she actually began to listen to what they were saying. It took her only a moment to realize what they were saying; the exact words were irrelevant: it was the same as always.

Sakura and Ino were being typical again; by this point Hinata was getting terribly tired of it. They were more mature than this, but being around Sasuke seemed to make them temporarily devolve. As usual, both of them were trying to catch his attention but spending more time snapping at each other. Sasuke was staying out of it when he could, and though he said very little, Hinata could sense his annoyance rising.

This always made her so sad. Hopefully the mission would be over soon so that he wouldn't have to deal with them any more. It was depressing to her to see him so annoyed; if only they had other allies, like Shikamaru or Temari, who would make him temporarily happy again. That was all she really wanted, she realized: for him to be happy. If she could make him happy-

Abruptly she jerked her head up, eyes widening. The other three glanced back at her immediately.

"Are you alright?" Sakura finally asked.

"Oh... it's n-nothing."

"Geez, don't do that to us," Ino muttered. Hinata nodded timidly and continued glancing out into the park. That wasn't true; it had been something. She had just realized what she had been thinking. Wanting to make him happy? It reminded her so much of how much she had heard about love. Sure, she wanted her friends to be happy, but the way she had been thinking it...

Leaning back against the cool bench, Hinata sighed heavily. It couldn't be. Was she really just like the other two people on their team? Sasuke had said that she didn't annoy him, that she was his friend. Or was that what they really were? Why couldn't she tell the difference?

At some point they got up, moved elsewhere. Sasuke seemed to be trying to track down some information, but Hinata wasn't exactly sure what it was. It didn't have anything to do with the shinobi, and she couldn't focus in any case. Once, Sakura had to ask her a question three times before she heard it. She was still lost in a murky haze of thought with no end in sight.

"We're wasting our time," Sasuke abruptly growled, stopping in mid-step.

"No, I think we have some people following us," Ino insisted. "Eventually they'll be convinced to attack."

"There are always people following us."

"I think there are more of them," Sakura added. "Most likely they're just waiting for the right time to strike."

"Then let's give them one," Sasuke said. He turned and spoke closer to them in a voice barely above a whisper. "It is about noon. For lunch, we'll all split up. Hopefully they'll try to take us down alone. If you're attacked, make sure the assassin doesn't have a way to kill himself before trying to find the others. We'll meet back here after lunch."

"Right!" Sakura and Ino burst in opposite directions, quickly vanishing down the street. The next moment Sasuke exploded in a puff of smoke and Hinata was alone in the crowded street.

This would be better, at least. She wouldn't get in between Sakura and Ino, and Sasuke would have some time to relax. When he could get some breaks from them he was always in a better mood. Still contemplating this, Hinata found a small restaurant and bought her lunch.

Vaguely the thought occurred to her that she would make a better target in a deserted location. Her body moved to the roof of an out-of-the-way building while her mind wandered aimlessly. She sat down on the side and began eating, without really tasting anything.

There was a slight burst of chakra above her, and something large hurtled down toward the roof. She merely took another sip of her water. Sasuke landed lightly beside her, bringing with him a burst of wind that she ignored.

Without speaking he dropped to the edge of the roof beside her and opened his own meal. They continued to eat, both in silence. At least he wouldn't try to make conversation or make her say anything. It was fine if she just stayed inside herself; he wouldn't intrude upon her thoughts. With most people, the other's presence would have annoyed her, but not with him.

That thought made her sigh again. Things were so confusing. Sasuke was one of the few people that she was honestly comfortable with, one of the few that didn't worry her. Hopefully, he was comfortable with her. He wouldn't have come here if he wasn't, would he?

Finishing her meal, Hinata began rolling her cup on its rim on the edge of the building. Silently she watched the water slosh around inside. It was in turmoil, just like she was. What was she thinking? Even if she honestly understood what she was feeling, all she could do was ruin what she had already accomplished. Then she would be just like the other two, and Sasuke would completely close himself off again. How could anything like that happen, anyway? Why-

Sasuke's hand tapped her wrist, stopping her from rolling the cup any further and cutting off her train of thought. Startled, she glanced up at him nervously.

"You have a lot of nervous gestures," he commented. "There isn't anything wrong with them, but they don't really help you. You just become more and more nervous."

"Y-you're right, Sasuke-san." She nodded hastily and set her cup down, determined not to touch it again. This time, she actually kept away from it. Somehow, it was easier after Sasuke had said it. Maybe he could actually help her trust in herself a little bit more.

They finished without incident and returned to the meeting place separately. Sakura and Ino arrived at different times, looking slightly glad and slightly upset. Hinata could guess who they had been trying to find during lunch. In any case, none of them had been attacked, so the day would go on regardless.

Part of her really wanted them to attack now. If she had to fight someone she would perhaps be shaken out of her near-depression. It wouldn't actually solve any of her problems, or resolve her issues, but it would hold them off for a while longer. As long as this day went on, she would just keep wondering about herself. Things would be so much better if the assassins just struck now.

But fate seemed to hate her as much as most people hated her

* * *

"So how exactly are you connected to the doctor?" Sasuke asked. He didn't particularly want to talk to the vendor in front of him, but the man had started the conversation. It wasn't as if he had much better to do, anyway; this would at least keep Sakura and Ino from trying to talk to him.

"Nothing official. Matthew-sama has just done quite a few things for me." The man scratched his large belly and jabbed at his stand with a finger. "I'm a carpenter, like you can see. A lot of times you get injured in that job, and he's always there to help patch me up. He's set right bones I thought were gonna be ruined forever. A miracle-worker, I tell ya."

"Miracle worker?" Sasuke raised a questioning eyebrow. "Just for setting bones properly?"

"Naw, that sort of thing you see all the time. Not sure why I'm telling you this, but let me explain. My son's a really little tyke, probably about up to here or so. But he takes after his mom, and he's always running all over the place. One night there was a pretty bad storm, and he managed to get out of the house.

"We looked for him for hours, and eventually found him quite a ways back, trapped under a big tree trunk. He was so cold his skin was almost blue, and whenever we moved he would give a pitiful little cry of pain. The wife could hardly bear it, but I managed to get him to Matthew-sama's place -- he lives at the hospital, ya know."

"And what happened?" This might actually accomplish something after all.

"I stayed awake all night, I just couldn't relax at all, you know? But in the morning, Matthew-sama returned him. Not only was he fine, he was cheerful and bouncing all over the place again. He'd been all warmed up, and even though I thought he'd gotten some broken bones, he didn't have a scratch on him. If that ain't a miracle, I don't know what is."

"Hm." Sasuke's inclination was to narrow his eyes suspiciously, but he repressed the urge and merely nodded in a friendly manner. That sounded to him like a medical jutsu more than anything. He hadn't sensed any chakra around Doctor Matthew, and while it wasn't likely he had missed anything, it was possible he had made a mistake. There wasn't any doubt that Matthew was no shinobi, but that didn't mean he was entirely normal, either.

He thanked the vendor for the story and managed to get away without actually buying any wood. Whenever he'd gotten a chance he'd been trying to get information about Matthew without making it appear that he was actually asking. So far, he had a distinct impression of the man as an honest and kind person, but someone with a bad past. There was definitely more to him than first appeared, but Sasuke decided that it wouldn't affect him or the mission and hence wasn't his concern.

That was an important bit of information, in any case. The day wouldn't be entirely wasted. As Sakura had said, there were people following them, but they seemed very reluctant to actually strike. Perhaps they suspected something. There hadn't even been any subtle assassination attempts. Then again, perhaps one day of relaxing would benefit the team as a whole.

Glancing over his shoulder slightly, Sasuke looked at the rest of the group from the corner of his eye. This would at least shut Ino and Sakura up about getting a day off for a while, and they did seem to be in a much better mood after this. Normally he would have considered this something Hinata didn't like, but she had been unfocused all day. There was definitely something on her mind, but again, it wasn't his concern.

At this point, there wasn't much to do but stick with the plan. Only several more hours...

* * *

"Maybe we should split up for dinner," Sakura suggested. "Is anyone else hungry? I sure am."

"That's a good idea," Ino said brightly. "Maybe we should split into twos this time. I could-"

"You could go with Hinata-chan," Sakura cut her off. "I think that's a great idea."

"Or we could do it the other way. Come on, Sasuke-kun, wouldn't you rather have lunch with me than that beast?"

"Ino-chan! Don't bug him like that! You'd never give him time to eat. That's why-"

Their argument didn't really get past that point, though they said a great deal more. Sasuke merely rolled his eyes and let them run out of steam. Hinata remained silent and tapped her fingers against each other. This conversation had penetrated the fog of her thoughts, but not in a good way. Both of them were transparently trying to be alone with Sasuke. That was normal.

What wasn't normal was that she realized she wanted to as well. Not for their reasons, of course, but she would have preferred to be alone with him. Of course, a lot of that was just wanting to be away from the two of them, but there was another part that didn't want to be alone. Not just with anyone, either, but with him.

That worried her more than any previous thought. How far was she from Ino or Sakura? At least she wasn't actively annoying him at the moment, but wasn't it really only dishonest if she didn't voice what she felt?

When Sakura and Ino finally stopped arguing, Sasuke suggested they return to their house and make their own dinner. They didn't have the breath remaining to argue with the suggestion, so they all returned. It was strange, Hinata realized; she hadn't ever noticed that it was getting dark already. Apparently being farther north changed the patterns of the sun.

Back at the house, they were given the kitchen, a few supplies, and little else. For a moment Hinata was allowed to escape her problems while she made the meal. Cooking wasn't something she particularly enjoyed, but she actually did it well and didn't have to do it with anyone else. For that reason, she sort of liked it.

But then Ino got the idea that she could make something for Sasuke, and of course Sakura was in the kitchen as fast as she could. They let Hinata have her own space, but they were noisy, and she started thinking about them again. One way or another the meal was served to a contemplating Sasuke. He barely looked up, poring over a small scroll in one hand.

This meal took a lot longer, even though Hinata wasn't hungry. She couldn't bring herself to eat much, but tried to at least look like she was eating so the others wouldn't mention it. Slowly she came to a painful realization.

Despite her best efforts to the contrary, she loved Sasuke. Not like they did, really, but she still couldn't deny it. There was really only one difference between them, and that was that she actually respected the fact that he wanted to be alone. They were already friends, and as long as Sasuke thought that was all things would be fine. It wouldn't be a comfortable existence, but it would be more comfortable than the alternative. At least she could make his life easier by just being his friend.

After this mission, of course, they probably wouldn't see each other again for a long time. They weren't really teamed together in any way, and the disparity between their strengths would separate them. That, at least, she could work to change. If she trained hard enough, went back to Neji, asked Naruto for help, perhaps she could rise to the point where she wouldn't slow him down. If she became strong enough, they'd be more likely to be on the same missions. Working against the system wouldn't accomplish anything. Instead of trying to be with him, she could work to be someone he would want to be with.

That was all she could do. It would have to be enough.

* * *

Nearly invisible in the shadow of the door, Sasuke continued to glance down at the man sitting at his desk. Matthew had been in the office since he arrived, swiftly and steadily working. From this vantage point, Sasuke couldn't really tell what he was doing, but it seemed to be several letters to patients.

"How long have you been here?" Matthew asked abruptly, not slowing his writing.

"A few minutes."

"Ah. You're pretty stealthy, in that case. So what brings you here again? I can't imagine that it is me, as I'm quite the boring person. Being a doctor in a town like this is a rather dull job."

"So far nothing has happened," Sasuke told him immediately. "I don't think we're going to accomplish anything." His eyes narrowed. "Your plan wasn't difficult to create, and I had considered it before you suggested it. Why did you think it was a particularly good idea?"

"Well, I thought it was worth a shot." Matthew put his hands behind his head and spun in his chair to face Sasuke. "Sorry I wasted your time, then. I trust that you shook any pursuit before coming here?"

"Of course."

"Thanks. I appreciate that."

"Why exactly do you need to be so cautious?" Sasuke asked, raising an eyebrow. "Who is so interested in killing you?"

"To quote myself, 'I don't know.' It isn't a simple-" He paused. "The forces that are following you... have they made any attack attempts today? Are they growing in number? Is this the first time the group has split when you aren't trying to cause an attack?"

"Yes." Immediately Sasuke's eyes narrowed. That was a suspiciously accurate statement. "Why?"

"It is a fairly common tactic to wait until an opponent _must_ be somewhere before striking. It is quite possible that our vague opponents suspected that you were planning something -- leisure is quite out of place for shinobi -- and took a cautious route, merely gathering strength but staying away."

"And you mean they might be attacking now because I'm gone."

Matthew readjusted his glasses in a concise movement. "Exactly."

* * *

Until forming responses these questions, I hadn't realized how many of you took the time to review, even if only toleave anencouraging note. Thank you all.

Reactions to Matthew have varied quite a bit. Yes, as one person put it, he is in there for a reason.

Thank you for the encouragement regarding Sakura and Ino, "Random person." I do think my characterization was a flaw in planing, but it is good to know that it is not a complete error. Opinion is a vast and wonderful thing.

Regarding SGL's comment: Unfortunately, yes, this has become somewhat of an alternate universe. That's the danger of writing fanfiction about aseries that is not yet complete. I really wish I would have waited a bit longer to write it so I would have known of Sakura's Tsunade-based fighting style, but it is impossible to change such things now.

The next chapter should be updated on the Monday after next, unless I see a reason to update sooner. It may please some of you to know that the story will be shifting from focusing on characters to advancing the plot as of the next chapter.


	14. Connections

I'm updating a bit early because it fits my schedule better. Expect another update about two weeks from tomorrow. Other than that, no comments except to point out that there are responses following the chapter as usual. I found one of them rather interesting.

* * *

Chapter Fourteen: Connections

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Sakura asked abruptly, breaking the silence. Ino glanced at her as if disinterested, her voice light but her words completely serious.

"If you're thinking we're going to be attacked soon, then yeah, I'm basically thinking that."

"I guess yet another house is going to get destroyed," Sakura sighed. "We really blow up a lot of stuff, don't we?"

Kicking off the wall behind her, Hinata hurled herself across the room. She caught herself on the opposite wall, sending tile sliding to the floor and making the room shudder. Sakura was about to say that her action was pretty excessive, when abruptly the wall Hinata had been standing against erupted in flames.

It fell apart a moment later, dozens of warriors flooding in to attack them. They wielded a variety of weapons, and immediately attacked the three of them working in close conjunction. Obviously a rag-tag bunch of assassins, but a rather large bunch.

Without shifting her eyes Hinata saw Sakura finish several hand seals and blinked in surprise. Her jutsu was incredibly fast. Chakra flooded out from Sakura, covering all of the warriors. The next moment they were all stumbling, collapsing to the ground and lying still without movement. Ino joined Hinata in her surprised blink.

"What was that?"

"A stunning jutsu," Sakura grinned, flipping back a lock of pink hair. "It convinced their brains to shut down oxygen flow for just a second, so all of them fell unconscious. It's great for using on large crowds. We should capture a few of these and make sure they can't kill themselves. When Sasuke gets back we can wake them up and question them. I'm sure he'll be happy tha-"

Before she could say any more, one of the supposedly unconscious warriors whirled to his feet, both arms flashing. Several thin strips of paper struck Sakura, who cried out in surprise. The next moment she exploded in flame, but her body dissolved to mist and the flaming notes dropped to the floor.

Sakura appeared on the opposite side of the room, on her knees and panting. _If I'd been a split second slower that would have gotten me... _Two of the other bodies were rising as well, evidently unaffected by her jutsu. Great. She should have considered that there would be better shinobi among the group.

Ino struck first, send a kunai hurtling toward the shinobi who had attacked Sakura. He tossed another sheet of paper into the air. It exploded in a wall of flame that deflected her kunai. After that, Sakura couldn't afford to watch any more, because one of the other shinobi was hurling a katana at her. The third dropped what looked like a bomb among the unconscious assassins; realized what he intended to do, Hinata somersaulted past him, snagging the bomb and hurling it away.

Then the battle was closed, and there was only the moment.

* * *

Back flipping, Hinata barely avoided the fist of the third warrior. His long, flowing red robe swept behind him with his movement. It was covered in images of flames, but the flames seemed almost alive. Ducking around his next punch, Hinata touched a hand to his shoulder and sent a surge of chakra.

As she had feared, his robe completely negated her attack. Her soft touch wasn't enough to even move him, and the warrior merely smirked broadly. His laughter was cut short when Hinata dropped back to one arm and kicked him squarely in the chest. This blow made him hurtle backward, crashing through the wall and into the yard.

Leaping after him, Hinata realized abruptly in midair that something was wrong. Her opponent was on his feet, and the wind seemed to be catching his robe strangely. Abruptly one of his flames leapt, off his robe, flashing through the air directly toward her face. She barely managed to twist out of the way of it and land.

The instant she did so, she felt something hot snap around her leg. With a slight gasp she realized that more of the flames had dropped from his cloak, making a line of fire across the ground that now held her in place. It burned, but not as badly as a real fire did.

Before she could react, two more lines of flame snaked out from his cloak, binding her arms in place. Raising his arms, the warrior pulled more flames from his robe into the air about him, balls of fire burned around each of his hands. Smirking, he burst off the ground toward her.

Just before he could smash his hands onto her face from either side, Hinata moved. Breaking away from the flames that bound her arms, she slid kunai to her hands and slashed in a broad x shape in front of her. Sensing the attack at the last second, her opponent managed to throw himself back slightly. She still slashed through the front of his robe and traced lines of blood across his chest.

Growling in anger, the shinobi couldn't manage anymore than landing on his feet. All the flames on his robe immediately burst around him in a spiraling inferno, but Hinata leapt away from him, to the middle of the yard.

* * *

Of the most importance was avoiding getting skewered by the katana. This Sakura did by kicking it away just before it reached her. Of secondary importance was avoiding her opponent's follow up... but it didn't come. The other woman was standing some distance away, apparently focusing on some jutsu.

At that moment cracks appeared in the ground about Sakura's feet. Steam began issuing from them, and on instinct Sakura leapt away. From a further distance and with more time, she realized that she had been wise to do so. It wasn't steam; it was a very dangerous poison.

Her opponent blew, sending the rising cloud flooding toward Sakura. Clapping her hands together, the pink-haired shinobi sent a burst of chakra into the air. If this didn't work, she was pretty much screwed. Otherwise...

Winds whipped about her dangerously, and the cloud of steam was shredded into strands that moved on either side of her. Obviously annoyed, her opponent hurled something that Sakura easily dodged. When the small object struck the ground, however, it exploded in a green puff of smoke. Probably poison again.

Once more, the winds blew the poison away before it could reach Sakura. Flicking back a lock of pink hair, she smirked at her opponent.

"Sorry, you lose." Keeping her protective winds circling about her, Sakura carefully stepped back to the middle of the yard.

* * *

A sheet of paper flew just past her head, and Ino instinctively dodged it. This was a mistake, she quickly realized, as her opponent had expected that and had already hurled another note. It exploded in conflagration that lit a tree on fire; the shinobi watched his destruction carefully.

Ino's kunai bit into his back bloodily, and he fell forward. He managed to catch himself with one foot, but she was already striking with her other kunai. This one, however, merely skewered a piece of paper that abruptly appeared where he had been moments ago. Before she could let go of it the paper exploded.

Collapsing on the opposite side of the yard, Ino growled. This guy was really annoying and he didn't let up. She had already injured him several times, and he wasn't showing any sign of slowing down. Whatever chakra his flaming notes required, he seemed to have a great deal of it.

Both off them attacked at the same moment. Ino launched a wave of shuriken that sliced past her opponent, leaving blood trailing in the air but not managing to actually kill him. He had merely thrown two kunai, but at terrible speed. They sped toward her face and she managed to catch them only barely in time.

The next moment both kunai exploded, sending Ino falling back again. Instantly another explosion rocked the place she had landed, but she had expected the technique. Spinning in the air above, she landed in a fighting position in the middle of the yard.

* * *

As one, the three warriors charged the three female shinobi in the center of the yard, each aiming to finish their battle. Midway through the charge, a shadow appeared above the clearing. Everyone had a single moment to look up and see Sasuke suspended above them, eyes gleaming with red light.

He shot to the ground just before Ino's attacker. The man tried to slow down, but it was to no avail. Flowing like water, Sasuke dropped back with one forearm on the ground and smashed his sandal directly into his opponent's jaw. Instantly the shinobi was flung into the air with a painful crack and landed with a thud.

Meanwhile, Hinata still had to deal with the warrior attacking her. There was an aura of flame around him, and he was striking at her brutally, as if he did not expect to be attacked in any way. Indeed, the flames would shield him from most attacks. But only most of them.

Hinata's palm smashed into his chest, where his robe flapped open. His chakra twisted dangerously and his heart stopped in one instant. For a moment he remained on his feet, then his eyes rolled to the back of his head, the flames on his robe and in the air about him faded, and he dropped to the ground. She bent down to him, checking to make sure that he was actually dead, and then rose to her feet.

Certain Sasuke would be victorious, Sakura instead focused on her own opponent. Having halted her run, the shinobi paused for a moment, then hurled a pouch that exploded in midair. Only a shower of dust-like particle rained down from it. For a moment Sakura paused, watching them, a strange expression on her face. Slowly the particles drifted through her shield of air.

Then she snapped her hands forward, and the chakra bound wind surrounding her rushed forward. The dust washed over her opponent, who choked and then collapsed backward. For a moment there was silence as the four remaining shinobi stood alone on the battlefield.

"We did it!" Ino crowed, fairly jubilant. She shifted beside Sakura and elbowed her with a smirk. "You'll notice that Sasuke saved _me_, not you. I guess that says something about who he-" she cut off abruptly, noticing Sakura's ashen face. "Is... is everything alright?"

Sakura collapsed to the ground the next moment, only barely being caught by Ino. Immediately Sasuke was beside her, eyes narrow as he considered her condition. In one swift movement he lifted Sakura from Ino's arms.

"Some of the poison got in her system," he told them curtly. "I can't stop it from spreading."

"Wh-what are we going to do, Sasuke-kun?" Ino asked, eyes wide.

"Find Matthew-san," Sasuke answered, already leaping away. Ino followed him quickly, jumping along the path he had taken. Throwing one of the still living assassins over her shoulder, Hinata followed them. At top speed Sasuke raced from rooftop to rooftop of the town, toward the hospital.

When they arrived, they found the hospital surprisingly full. Every chair was filled by someone, all of them looking fairly critically injured. Hinata had to wonder if perhaps the assassins had attacked more people than just them, but Sasuke ignored them completely, striding directly toward Matthew's office.

He opened the door with his foot, and Matthew instantly looked up at him, eyes narrow.

"She's been poisoned," Sasuke said immediately, setting Sakura down in front of the desk gently. "It has already spread throughout much of her body. Can you do anything?"

"Well, without knowing th-"

"Do anything?" Ino interrupted. "How is he going to do anything? This was a shinobi-created poison! How can conventional medicine cure that?"

"As I was saying," Matthew stepped around the desk and knelt down on the floor beside Sakura, "I can't know the poison so I can't use an antidote. Conventional wisdom states that one should use unconventional tactics at such a point." As he spoke he rolled up his sleeves midway up his arms.

"But what are you going to do?" Ino demanded. She seemed like she was about to say more, but she abruptly cut off, because of what happened at that moment.

Matthew raised both his hands, and green energy lit up around his fingertips. It seemed to course down his arms and collect at the very ends of his hands. The next moment, while the others watched in surprise, he gently touched his fingertips lightly to Sakura's stomach and forehead. A soft hum began and ended rather quickly, and for a moment Sakura and Matthew were both bathed in green light.

"That should have neutralized the poison," Matthew told them, voice coming heavier than it usually did.

"How much can you use chakra?" Sasuke asked him. Matthew gave a nervous smile and scratched the back of his head.

"Is that what you guys call it?" There was a pause in which Sasuke looked down at him expressionlessly, then the shinobi nodded.

"It will suffice for now. Thank you."

"Well, as a doctor it's my oath to preserve life," Matthew answered. "I really don't like to see death."

"Wh... what's happening?" Sakura's eyes had flickered open, and she was glancing at the others blearily. Matthew offered her a hand up, which she took without really thinking about it. For a moment she wobbled on her feet, but then her eyes focused. "Did he save me?"

"That's the long and short of it," Ino answered. "I'm glad you're alright… you big oaf."

"I don't want to be the one to interrupt you," Matthew said, coughing into one hand, "but there are some business matters we really should take care of first. Obviously, I'm not going to charge you for my assistance; I don't want to be linked to you in any way. But there are a lot of people out there waiting for their time, and I'd like to at least put on a show to handle this properly."

"Fine," Sasuke said. Hinata blinked at him, slightly confused. His tone was extremely terse, and he was on edge. There was something that was confusing him, but she couldn't tell what it was.

"I have the proper paperwork in the other room," Matthew told them, moving through the door. "You'll have to sign a few things and wrap up business and then you can go."

They went into the other room, where instantly the eyes of all the other patients were upon them.

"It will be all right," Matthew told them with a slight smile. "Someone will be with you in a moment." He moved to the table and pulled up several papers. After fishing around in his pockets for a moment he shrugged sheepishly. "I forgot to bring a pen. Let me go get one."

He turned and entered his office again. The door closed behind him, and instantly Sasuke's gaze snapped to the others.

"Kill everyone in the room."

The order was startling enough that there was a slight delay before they could obey. Hinata acted first, touching a palm to the head of the nearest sitting man and slaying him instantly. Sakura hesitated with her kunai, unable to make herself attack.

Suddenly she saw a flash of steel and chakra, and realized that the man nearest her was not only uninjured, but also wielding a large blade that had been hidden by illusion. No longer hesitating, she sent her kunai into his skull and sped into the attack. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Hinata and Ino attacking as well.

It was over almost immediately, the four of them now standing in a room of corpses. There was an uncomfortable pause, and Ino spoke up first.

"I realize that they were all assassins," she said to Sasuke, "but how did you know? What if we had killed a bunch of innocent people?"

"There wasn't any doubt," Sasuke answered darkly. "Matthew-san was dropping hints about it in the entire conversation. I knew for certain that there was an assassin immediately, but I wasn't sure who it was, or if any of them were innocent bystanders. What clinched it for me was when he had to get his pen."

"I don't get it," Sakura told him bluntly. "What does that mean?"

"Do you really think someone with his level of intelligence would forget something?" Sasuke asked. Sakura's eyebrows rose.

"Not that you are to blame," Matthew entered the conversation, emerging from his office and wiping his glasses. "You were unconscious during most of the conversation, and my technique unfortunately slows some nervous functions temporarily."

"The shinobi we brought with us," Sasuke addressed Matthew immediately. "What is his condition? We needed him alive."

"I ensured that he will be unconscious until we wish him to wake. Furthermore, he had a poisoned needle by his arm and a pouch of poison in his mouth. Both items were removed."

"Good. I'll want to talk to him fairly soon."

"If you say no, it will be alright," Matthew told them slowly, "but I have a request for you. I can't stay in this town any longer. After this incident, they know who I am, and they'll be coming after me. I don't want to put anyone here in danger."

"So... you want to come with us?" Sasuke finished his thought. "I suppose that you would pull your weight. Can you run?"

"Probably not as fast as you, but a good deal faster than a normal human," Matthew told him. "If you go slowly I might be able to keep up."

"Very well." Sasuke turned away, then sat down in one of the now empty chairs, folding his arms. "Don't think that I completely trust you, but for now this will suffice. Our path might have more to do with yours than I originally thought. We'll be going soon, as soon as we can properly question our captive. Get ready and we'll begin as soon as possible."

"I'll be ready in ten minutes," Matthew responded, readjusting his glasses. "If you wouldn't mind, could you clean up this room? I'd rather people not be left wondering why there are so many dead bodies in my wake."

"Yeah, I can handle that," Sakura nodded. "It's the least I can do in return for saving my life, right?"

* * *

Those of you who prefer plot-oriented chapters over character-oriented ones will likely be pleased by my next update, as a bit of the excessive mystery will be removed. I'm sure you've guessed at some of the things to be revealed, but hopefully it will still interest you.

Regarding how long it is until Lee's appearance: without checking, I'd say about six chapters.

I'm very glad to hear from a variety of people that they found Hinata's thoughts in the previous chapter effective. That was probably the most important shift in terms of characters and I was worried it would go poorly.

Regarding Nanthakon's review: Thank you for your kind words. I assure you thatthe sasuhina element will not be ignored for the rest of the story. Now, as for your guess at gender... sorry, I'm rather male. But thank you for the guess; it is validating to know that an actual female thinks I did a convincing job. I intentionally limited the number of scenes narrated by Sasuke for another reason: it forces readers to know as little about what he is feeling as Hinata does. And while I'm addressing you directly, I don't mind lengthy reviews at all.


	15. Answers

Most likely, I will shift my update schedule slightly and update every other Tuesday morning. Updating on Monday has become impractical.

* * *

Chapter Fifteen: Answers

There was a strange silence in the room in the wake of the brief and pitched battle. Ino and Sakura were taking the bodies out of the room and disposing of them as well as they could. Hinata had tried to be helpful but quickly found she was only getting in the way, so she retreated to the chair beside Sasuke.

"Silly Sakura, getting herself poisoned," Ino was muttering, quite audibly to her subject. "I'll bet you got yourself poisoned just so Sasuke would pay more attention to you."

"Did not," Sakura shot back, flashing a poisonous glance of her own. "Not any more than you let yourself get poisoned, anyway."

"Did not. I don't need to attract his attention, because apparently I already have it." Ino flicked a bit of blood off a long lock of hair. "You'll notice that when Sasuke joined the battle he decided to help _me_, not you."

"You were probably just closest," Sakura argued back. Neither was keeping up a pretense of being quiet, but Hinata wasn't about to speak and Sasuke was saying as little as usual so it didn't really matter. "Besides, he probably just trusted me to get the job done."

"To get yourself poisoned, you mean? No one has time to think logically in a situation like that; he probably just moved instinctively. So he defended the person he cared most about... me, of course."

Blinking, Hinata glanced to her right at Sasuke. He was sitting exactly as he had been before, his arms folded, his head slightly tilted forward. She could barely see his eyes between his hair and the high neck of his cloak. Though he was vaguely annoyed, she thought it seemed like he was more focused on other things.

"I... have a q-question," she whispered to him, hoping Sakura and Ino wouldn't hear her. They weren't paying the slightest attention. Sasuke opened his eyes silently and glanced at her from the shadows. "If you don't want to answer, that's alright," she added hurriedly, "but I am curious why you really did decide to defend Ino-san."

"Her opponent was stronger than Sakura-san's," Sasuke answered. "They both would have won, given time, but I wanted to end it quickly."

"Oh, I see. Thank you, Sasuke-san." Hinata paused for a moment. "But what about my opponent? I thought he-"

"He was probably more dangerous than Ino-san's opponent," Sasuke interrupted her, closing his eyes again. Hinata was about to ask what he meant but stopped once she realized it for herself. Sasuke had actually trusted her to finish her opponent. Maybe she really was strong enough not to hold him back, or at least close.

Sakura and Ino finished at about the point that Matthew emerged from one of the side hallways, carrying a pack over his shoulder. He'd changed clothes, and was now dressed in civilian clothing; a loose white shirt and nondescript pants. Both seemed suitable for supernaturally fast movement. After setting down his pack heavily, he glanced toward Sasuke.

"Do you want to talk to the prisoner now?" he asked. Sasuke didn't answer verbally, but got to his feet. Both of them vanished into the office.

* * *

With a slight groan the man opened his eyes. Such blinding light... his eyes ached, and his head was swimming with the aftereffects of something he couldn't quite grasp. They'd been attacking and then his memory started to become fragmented. No, it couldn't actually be like that, it must be pre-battle jitters.

"You're awake."

Shocked, the man forced his eyes open to look at who had spoken. He didn't recognize the voice. That was a bad sign, even in camps such as theirs, where men shifted in and out. This voice sounded dangerous, and something about it put a shiver down his spine.

Directly above was the ceiling he had been staring at before. When he glanced to his right, however, he looked directly into the eyes of a man standing over him. He was wearing a long black cloak, and his eyes burned down upon him from over the collar. Abruptly the man realized that this man was _Uchiha Sasuke_ and he shivered. Behind the Uchiha was another man, standing some distance back, his eyes narrow and unusually calculating.

"I suppose you think you've captured me," he managed to grunt. His voice rasped a lot more than he intended it to, and his bravado fell apart before those intense eyes. To avoid an instinctive reaction of fear, he attacked, sending a kunai through his opponent's leg and leaping up to kick him in the chest.

Nothing happened. The most physical movement he could accomplish was weak muscle twitching and speaking. They'd probably poisoned him while he was unconscious. D cowards.

"I don't care what you think," Sasuke told him darkly. "Tell us why you attacked us in the first place."

Despite being nearly immobile, the man's lips twisted in such a way that his entire face became a visage of pure spite. "What makes you think I'll answer you?"

The next thing the man knew he was being jerked off the ground and smashed against a wall, sending pain shooting through his body. His interrogator's hand was at his neck, and though their eyes were at the same level the man's feet were still dangling in the air. Sasuke's eyes hadn't even flickered with emotion.

"I need information," Sasuke continued in a low, cold voice. "Who is hiring you? Why are so many of you fighting?"

"There's no way you'll make me betrayed the others," the man spat at him. "No matter what you do to me, no matter how much you torture me, I'll never tell you anything. You can kill me, it doesn't matter, I know you will anyway. I don't have anything to live for anymore except justice!"

"Justice?" the other man asked, tapping his glasses back into place. "What is unjust?"

"Ask the Uchiha," the prisoner spat, "he knows. All of you, no matter where you lurk, are going to pay! Even if you kill me, you can't stop what's coming!"

"You intend to strike at the problem before it can strike you?" the same man asked carefully.

"Ye-" the man cut off, but it was already too late. He was already giving them some information without realizing it. The man standing behind Sasuke had a strange expression on his face; Sasuke himself was glancing over his shoulder, eyes narrow and unfathomable. Closing his lips firmly, the prisoner refused to speak more. They couldn't trick him if he didn't talk. Better yet, he'd bite off his own tongue and choke on the blood. Then they'd lose their prisoner an-

Just before he could bite down Sasuke struck him across the forehead with two fingers, completely knocking him off balance. The man felt a fine, stinging pain in his arm, and then the entire world began to spin, tumbling about and shifting colors and eventually fading to a dull grey.

* * *

"What was that?" Sasuke asked, glancing down at Matthew. The doctor pulled his syringe from the arm of the prisoner and made it vanish inside his clothing.

"A serum that should make him talk more easily," Matthew answered calmly. "He's still conscious, but some of his higher brain functions have been... nullified. If you ask him questions he'll give you at least some answer."

"Before that," Sasuke narrowed his eyes, "how did you... never mind. We'll finish this now." He turned to their prisoner, whose head was lolling lazily and gave him a slight shake. "Why did you attack those shinobi?"

"Orders," the man answered vaguely, eyes trying to focus on Sasuke's face and failing, "had to get rid of 'em eventually... kept killing off other agents... only people on hand." A slightly puzzled expression crossed his face and he squinted at Sasuke. "Who are you again?"

"Who ordered you to attack them?"

"...never actually see 'em. Guy always just comes. The boss always sends mysterious agents who bring the new mission and then vanish entirely."

"Who is the boss?"

"Business guy, of course... funds all the missions, does a lot of stuff we never see. Doesn't like to give his name... where am I again? Who are we tryin' to kill next?"

"Where is the business guy?" Sasuke's eyes were beginning to narrow in annoyance. Obviously, their opponents kept most of the minions in the dark. That much was to be expected, but at this rate they weren't going to get any truly important information.

"City," the man mumbled.

"What city?"

"Errefeen," the man slurred the name. It sounded vaguely familiar, but Sasuke couldn't immediately place it. He glanced over his shoulder to Matthew.

"Erafin." Matthew nodded in understanding. "It's a fairly large city to the northeast."

Then it was the one. Exactly where they were going in any case. Reassuring, but not exactly helpful information. He turned back to the man and shook him out of another fit of near-sleep.

"What do you know about the man?"

"Nobody knows much," the man said, blinking his eyes repeatedly. "Real hidden type, uses agents for agents for agents. I hear he's involved with Ragnarok Incorporated somehow; bet he's the guy in charge. Everybody says different stuff about him personally."

He continued rambling, but it didn't matter anymore. There, that was the detail that he needed, an actual lead to follow once they got to the city. At the mention of the name Ragnarok Matthew had taken in a sharp breath. Sasuke narrowed his eyes, let the prisoner slump to the floor and turned.

"Ragnarok Incorporated? Ragnarok... I don't think I know the word." Sasuke carefully gauged Matthew's reaction, which didn't even flicker... but that didn't mean anything.

"It isn't a term you should be familiar with; it isn't a part of your culture."

"But it's a part of yours?"

"Yes." Matthew inclined his head slightly. "In effect it means the end of the world."

"Strange name for a corporation," Sasuke mused, then pointed at the delirious man with one foot. "Do you think we'll get any more information out of him?"

"Probably nothing you don't already know."

In response Sasuke moved in a single violent motion, ending the attacker-turned-informer's life instantly. Flattening both his palms in the air he aimed them at the man for a moment, then discharged a shot of chakra. The body vanished in a cloud of smoke. For a moment Sasuke and Matthew glanced at each other, unsure of what to say, and then Sasuke moved to the door.

His hand froze just as he touched the knob. "What do you have to do with all of this? How are you connected?" He glanced over his shoulder, Sharingan appearing subconsciously. Matthew did not answer. Without batting an eye he readjusted a lock of his hair . "Very well. You may travel with us for the time being... but eventually I _will_ need to know."

"When that happens, we'll talk," Matthew answered. Pausing, Sasuke blinked once, then nodded. For now, that was enough.

* * *

The fire was still crackling merrily when Hinata returned from her slow walk. She hadn't had any place to go, but also had not wanted to return to the campsite in any way. Sakura and Ino were actually barely bothering Sasuke, but he was distracted enough by recent events that it was annoying him more than usual. Because she could do nothing to help him it was starting to depress her. Matthew had been completely silent during the conversation, watching the fire but taking in every detail. He'd been that way every day they had been traveling so far.

Her walk had done her a lot of good, and she made a personal vow to do so whenever it was practical. It appeared that her problem was gone, too, at least for a while. Sasuke was gone, leaving Sakura and Ino much subdued and merely staring at the fire contemplatively. Matthew looked exactly the same as he had before.

When she sat down by the fire Sakura and Ino didn't even notice her, as was usual. Hinata had been curious about Matthew, because she really didn't notice him. She was used to being unnoticed by people and observing, and it was odd to find someone who turned the tables. Unlike many people, he did notice her, and made a polite nod of greeting. Other than that, the silence continued to be broken by no more than the campfire.

"So, Matthew-san," Sakura eventually spoke up, tearing her gaze away from the fire. "Why did you want to come along with us, anyway? I mean, I know that some of those assassins were after you and that you didn't want anyone in the town getting hurt, but why are they after you?"

"Yeah," Ino added. "It isn't like traveling with us will make you any safer, either."

"In reverse order, I'm not interested in my own safety and it's personal," Matthew answered immediately and rapidly. The three women on different sides of the campfire blinked in confusion. "I mean that I care more about the people there than I do about my life and that the assassins were after me for reasons I would rather not have to explain."

"Can't you tell us anything?"

"If it will sate your curiosity," Matthew answered with an almost imperceptible roll of his eyes. "In the beginning I wasn't sure who they really were, but after I interrogated your prisoner with Sasuke I found out for certain. They are from someone I have worked for in the past.

"In the city of Erafin, which is our destination, there is a massive corporation that controls much of everything. Most of the local government is on their payroll, in any case. However, this is not readily apparent. Evidently someone from within this corporation began to organize assassins to attack many people... which is where you come in."

"What's this corporation called?" Sakura asked, leaning forward slightly.

"There is not any one name, but most of it is controlled by a few men, or perhaps merely one man. In any case, the organization that is causing our immediately problems is termed Ragnarok Incorporated. I've never heard of it before, nor do I know anything about them, but I'm pretty sure that the corporation I referred to earlier is behind it. If that is the case, when we get to Erafin, we'll get to them."

"Were you really high up in this corporation? You seem to know a lot."

"Hardly." Matthew smiled just slightly. "My position was clerical, and the equivalent of scum. But I did have enough knowledge of the greater organization, or at least they think I have enough, that I am worth killing. Fortunately, I figured out what they intended before it happened and fled to a small town. That worked, but only for a brief period of time."

"Then why are you heading straight toward the people trying to kill you?" Ino asked, crossing her arms and raising an eyebrow. Matthew merely smiled in response.

"If I may point out three things. First, that is the last thing they would expect me to do. Second, in the presence of four shinobi I am far safer than on my own regardless of the situation. Lastly, you are also going straight toward the people trying to kill you." Matthew ended with another inoffensive and consequently annoying smile. Ino grunted but didn't speak again.

"Where do you think Sasuke went?" Sakura asked, glancing uselessly into the woods. "He generally doesn't leave this late in the night."

"I have no idea," Ino told her. "That is kind of weird."

"Most of the time," Hinata spoke up before she could help herself, "when Sasuke leaves, he trains by himself." Her words caused an immediate reaction: Ino started and Sakura nearly jumped out of her seat. It was a moment later that Hinata realized that Matthew's gaze had flickered to her the instant she said it.

"He needs someone to train with," Sakura announced. "It's dangerous to train alone at night."

"Especially with you around," Ino muttered, on her feet and in step with her. The two moved into the forest, eyeing each other carefully. Their absence left a sudden gap which was filled only by the continual crackle of the fire.

Nervously Hinata pressed her fingers together, trying not to glance at Matthew on the opposite side of the flames. Something about him made her vaguely nervous, and she couldn't identify exactly why. Perhaps that was part of the reason he made her nervous. Though he seemed perfectly nice and even kind normally, there was definitely something scary about him. She knew that he was really smart from some of the things he had done and from what Sasuke had said, but that intelligence seemed determined to make you forget it.

Maybe that was what unsettled her. Something about him seemed so mundane and ordinary that when his exceptional nature became apparent it set her off balance. Like the swift glance that he had shot her when she mentioned that Sasuke usually trained. She couldn't understand what he was thinking.

She hadn't had many opportunities to look at his eyes, but she had gotten a few general feelings. Other than shifting to look at objects, his eyes rarely moved as most people's eyes did. It was as if he had almost no feelings and was only intent on the situation. The only revealing thing his eyes did was to occasionally become unfocused. Though she wasn't as good at eye psychology as Neji was, she was pretty certain this happened when he was thinking heavily about something.

"I have a question." Matthew's words cut directly into Hinata's thoughts, startling her. She hastily glanced up at him to find he was staring at the fire intently

"G-go ahead."

"Sakura and Ino... what is their relationship? It strikes me that they care very deeply for one another and would defend the other to the death, yet they are nearly constantly at each other's throats. Both of them are obviously infatuated with Sasuke and dislike the other for the same trait."

"I don't understand what your question is," Hinata said timidly after he had pondered silently for a moment. He had pretty much summarized the situation.

"Why are they like that?" Matthew asked, still not looking at her. "I do not have any context other than what little I have seen of them."

"They've been rivals for a really long time," Hinata told him. "When they were young they were each other's best friends until... well, until they reached the age where both of them fell in love with Sasuke-san. After that they were always competing with each other. At least that's what I've heard."

"Ah." Matthew nodded in understanding. "Interesting. It's obvious that it annoys Sasuke, as well. If I had to guess, I would say that a lot of girls have acted exactly like them and that while he doesn't like it there is nothing he can do to change it. Strangely enough, assuming that this has been happening for some time, it seems that he hasn't ever grown to accept it."

Obviously? It had taken her a while to discern everything he had just said. Sasuke was so good at hiding his emotions that she estimated very few knew anything about how much it annoyed him. That was another scary thing about Matthew.

"Yeah... Sasuke-san always had people chasing after him."

"Well, it certainly makes for an interesting team dynamic," Matthew smiled and shook his head slightly. "We have two friends who are also rivals for the third person, who dislikes them both but is too devoted to duty to get rid of them. Meanwhile, they'll never understand that, and the cycle will just perpetuate. Certainly a very interesting situation..." abruptly Matthew's eyes snapped up to Hinata, all trace of amusement gone, "but you'd know all about that, wouldn't you?"

Hinata gasped and shrank back, startled by the intensity of the statement. The next moment Matthew softened, but that didn't stop her heart from continuing to beat rapidly. What did he actually know? How could he know?

"Ino and Sakura both don't know how Sasuke feels about them, but no one knows how you feel," Matthew continued, lacing his fingers over one knee and sitting back. "Perhaps not even you."

"No..." Hinata admitted meekly. "I know. But it isn't like that!" she immediately insisted.

"Right," Matthew nodded slightly. "Sasuke doesn't seem annoyed by you, and you know more about him than they do. Friends, I take it? Meanwhile, you realize that all this annoys him and you're struggling to decide what to do." For a moment, Matthew paused. "Your reaction was fairly extreme, so this is probably a relatively recent discovery for you. You seem like the kind of person who hasn't ever had a lot of self-confidence, perhaps even a major relapse of doubt, so I'm guessing that you decided to keep quiet about everything and hope that the status quo will be acceptable." Finishing speaking, Matthew drifted into silence, again watching the fire.

"M...Matthew-san?" Hinata asked. His gaze snapped to her. "Why did you say all that?"

He blinked for a moment, then smiled slightly nervously. "I'm sorry, that wasn't very kind, was it? By nature I analyze things, and that includes people. Sometimes I go too far and forget that there really are people I'm dealing with." He smiled slightly. "You don't need to worry about me doing anything. No, I'm more than happy to stay out of all your business."

"Thank you, Matthew-san... I guess."

"Yeah, it's a dubious statement, I know." He glanced back at her, curious but not intensely so. "You all seem to know each other from a long while back. I don't really know anything about how shinobi villages work... what's your connection?"

"We were all in the same graduating class at the academy," Hinata explained, glad that the focus of his intellect had shifted off her. "For a while we were always in the same classroom, but after we graduated we sort of split up, but you still see others a lot. Most of the time you're on missions, but the rest of the time everyone is at the village – but I guess that I shouldn't explain all that to an outsider."

"I can understand that." Matthew nodded. "One thing, though: do shinobi generally work pretty closely in teams?"

"Very closely. Teamwork is one of the most important aspects of a well-functioning team. Generally at higher levels there are fewer people in one team, but this mission is an exception."

"Interesting." Matthew sat back a bit further, putting his back to a rock. This time when he paused he did not speak again, and Hinata was grateful. Slightly aside, she noted that silence passed between them very easily and not uncomfortably. Having him with them wouldn't be that much of an inconvenience after all, assuming that he could stay out of the way in combat.

Some time later Sasuke emerged from the shadows, conspicuously alone. He gave a scarce nod to Hinata and a curt one to Matthew and sat down. None of them spoke, because there was almost nothing to say, and the silence continued to pass easily. With Sakura and Ino gone, the general atmosphere was almost friendly.

But Hinata noticed that Matthew's eyes had been locked on Sasuke.

* * *

No worries regarding the gender thing. I also had a person ask about my age; I have no problem telling you, but I'd like you to guess first, primarily out of my curiosity.

Laundry Detergent: No, you don't really sound sexist, though you definitely sound as though your experiences withthe gendershave been fairly one-note. I believe there is a massive difference in thinking styles between people. None of the characters in this story think in a manner similar to mine, regardless of gender. My conversations with friends of both genders have led me to believe that everyone is more different than is commonly believed.

The previous chapter wasn't really filler, but was somewhat more difficult to write, in that it wasn't one of those scenes that I had very clearly in my mind before I began to write. This chapter is more along the lines of what you were talking about.

Matthew's role in the story is... unusual. I'm not certain exactly how I'd classify it, but it will become clearer in time. Our friend the anonymous ellipse said he seemed very intelligent for a "mere doctor", and I'll respond merely by saying that Matthew is a prodigy, of a sort, and noting thatmost doctors are fairly intelligent anyway. If you mean the phrase to express suspicion about him, I have no comment.

Regarding Lee: my previous prediction falls short. More happens before his role than I had previously estimated. So sorry, it will be a little while.


	16. Waste

I sincerely apologize for the delay in uploading this chapter. This one contains a bit of a pause, but the chapter takes us directly into the next wave of action, which I hope will satisfy the questions of some. Incidently, some of those will also be answered after the chapter.

* * *

Chapter Sixteen: Waste

Sighing, Hinata rolled to her side. She had never anticipated that they would have such problems. Though she didn't know everything about the situation, she thought that she had a basic grasp of what had to happen and what they were trying to do. Their opponents were somehow directly involved with Ragnarok Incorporated; it should be a simple matter to find out who they were and take them out.

Getting into the city had been easy. It was a very different environment then even the massive shinobi villages, much more hostile and bleak. Though Ino and Sakura had been eager to take advantage of the larger shopping selection, they'd actually remained largely focused on the task at hand. Matthew and Sasuke had set up some basic battle plans, and everyone was on edge and prepared for a confrontation. But they had never anticipated what would happen next.

Nothing. They'd arrived in the city and promptly been overwhelmed by waves of inactivity. There had been no immediate attacks, and she hadn't been able to sense anyone following them, either. Furthermore, asking questions about Ragnarok Incorporated had accomplished nothing.

Their opponents were hidden and evidently not interested in showing their faces. After some time of frustrated research, Sasuke determined that they would wait for a proper attack. As he had put it to her, their opponents seemed determined to destroy them and would eventually take the opportunity. A decent strategy, but a very annoying one. Could they really do no more than just wait for trouble to come to them?

Closing her eyes, determining to relax, Hinata tried to fall asleep. Tonight was a disturbing night.

* * *

The massive building loomed at one end of the village. It seemed to intimidate the nearby houses, all of which were set some distance away from its foundation. Sand swept past it, sliding off the walls that had been designed to weather such storms without a scratch. Around the entire building rose a thick wall, making the house appear more like a fortress.

One figure was slowly walking toward the house, nervously sliding two kunai against each other, producing a slight rasping sound. Despite all his training, he couldn't completely bring himself to do it. Oh, he would eventually move physically, but his mind couldn't grasp the enormity of his actions.

It was never a written law, but everyone in the Village of the Hidden Sand knew that the Kage's house was off limits. The best Jounin dropped by when they had official business, and in times of war it became a center of activity, but most of the time no one dared go near it unless they had a good reason. Only three people other than the Kazekage were allowed to come and go freely...

But he was going to enter tonight. He was going to do a lot more than that. After breaking through the defenses he would kill that sniveling, uppity Leaf shinobi and then put a kunai directly through the skull of that b herself. The thought of Temari dead made him smile slightly. That would be the true moment of his triumph, when he finally received justice for the terrible slights she had given him.

Of course, his action would accomplish far more than his personal needs. These new people... they had ambition, and he liked what they saw for the future. A new world without higher ranked ninjas lording it over the lesser, with everyone equal except for a few to keep order. After sending this terrible message to the Kazekage, he would be one of those few.

Ah, yes, the death of his sister would hit him hard. As soon as he came home, because he was always mysteriously absent on nights of a full moon, he would want to retaliate. But who was there for him to fight? Then the final axe would fall...

Grinning just slightly, the shinobi slipped his special weapon down the sleeve of his coat, gripping it carefully. This was going to be a great night. Looking back up at the gate, he began walking forward casually, as if nothing at all was wrong. He could already see the guard lounging lazily in his chair.

What he did not see was the man standing on the edge of the roof of the house itself. Dark eyes surveyed the figure approaching the house for a moment, then closed. The next instant the man vanished.

* * *

"I swear, I have a very important scroll to deliver to the Kazekage," the man insisted. The guard sitting in his chair merely grunted and flicked away a bit of ash from his cigarette.

"Synan-san... you always call whatever you have important. I don't care how important you think your business, I can guarantee you that he doesn't care. Especially not tonight. What's really important to you barely matters to the Kazekage."

"No, this one is truly important," Synan insisted, leaning on the edge of the guard post. He was so close he could smell the guard, and it wasn't at all pleasant. This guy was supposedly a Chuunin, but Synan hardly ever saw him around. Foolish dog.

"Well, let me see it," the guard rolled his eyes.

"Thank you, sir. You will not regret this." Pulling the scroll from his sleeve, Synan set it down on the desk in front of the guard.

Suddenly a blade exploded from one end of it, and Synan hammered the other end of the scroll with his palm. The blade flew forward, going straight through the guard's heart and pinning him to the wall behind. Grabbing the scroll, Synan smirked and twisted the blade slightly.

"Idiot," he hissed. "What do you know about the Kazekage, anyway?"

"More than you might think," the guard answered. Its voice had changed abruptly, and Synan started in shock. Instead of a sickly voice it spoke in a deep, inhuman grating tone. Abruptly the guard moved, further impaling itself on the blade. The guard jerked to its feet, pulling the weapon from the wall. One of its hands closed over Synan's throat and lifted him into the air.

Gagging, Synan glanced down at the sword in horror. Where it had torn through the guard's chest he saw only crushed and broken metal. It couldn't be... at that moment Kankuro emerged from the shadows behind Synan, rolling his eyes.

"Honestly, do you think we'd put a Chuunin on guard here tonight? Or ever, really?"

Growling, Synan pulled an explosive note from his sleeve and hurled it at the terrible puppet that was holding him. The monster staggered back, apparently unharmed by the flames, but released its hold. Synan back flipped over the fence, landing in the Kazekage's yard. Before he could move toward the house Kankuro emerged from the shadows again, two dark forms on either side of him.

"My battle is not with you," Synan hissed. "I have nothing against you. But I want to settle a score with Temari and Shikamaru."

"They're busy," Kankuro answered. "Besides, you don't deserve to fight them. They shouldn't have to fight trash like you."

"But neither should you." A new voice entered the conversation. Kankuro and Synan both looked to the side, somewhat surprised. Silhouetted against the house lights stood another figure, clad in flowing robes, face shadowed by the broad hat of a Kage. At that moment he raised the hat, eyes burning at the intruder. "You also are superior to him... Kankuro."

"Oh, hey Gaara," Kankuro said nervously. "I was just going to take out the trash, but if you really want to..."

"I would prefer to," Gaara said, walking forward past his brother. "You might as well rest. Tonight I'm not going to get any sleep anyway... besides, I'm in a bad mood."

"If you insist," Kankuro shrugged, then snapped his fingers. The puppets on either side of him swiftly contracted into much smaller forms, which leapt into the air and to his hand. He turned and vanished inside the house with a casual wave over his shoulder. Abruptly Synan realized he was alone in the courtyard with the Kazekage.

"Um... G-Gaara-dono," he forced himself to say, "I really wasn't going to-"

"I know why you are here," Gaara interrupted, tone freezing Synan in place. "You might be allied with them, but they're only using you. They didn't even give you any information I don't already know, because they know that you're nothing but trash, just as I do."

"Please be reasonable," Synan stuttered, stepping backward not entirely of his own will. "Can you really stand to see that Leaf shinobi slouching around our village as if he owns the place?"

"Shikamaru-san is irrelevant," Gaara said blankly, remaining motionless but with his eyes burning. "There are two kinds of people in this world-"

With a cry Synan cut him off, flinging every weapon he had as fast as he was able. He had come with everything he could carry: needles, shuriken of all sizes, kunai, dozens of exploding notes. His attack was unrelenting, just the way he had always practiced it. In the explosions he could almost see Gaara falling back. If he kept it up long enough, even the Kazekage's fabled defenses wouldn't hold up forever.

When the ashes faded all that was in Gaara's place was a cocoon of sand. Even as Synan gaped, the sand crumbled away, allowing dozens of weapons lodged within to drop to the ground harmlessly and revealing Gaara, who still hadn't moved. Crying out in shock, Synan whirled, leaping away. Escape was his only-

His right arm was jerked back so hard it nearly dislocated his shoulder. As he plummeted toward the ground, he realized that a tendril of sand had wrapped itself around his wrist and was pulling him back. Summoning all his chakra, he managed to balance himself, escape the sand and land on his feet.

The instant he did so a soft and cool wave flooded over him. Gaara had raised a hand, and as Synan watched he stopped emitting a cloud of extremely fine sand from his palm. Merely shielding his eyes, Synan laughed off the attack.

"What is that suppose to do?" he mocked.

"Simple," Gaara answered, tone blank. "The sand reaches you and begins settling into the pores of your skin. Each of the grains works its way into your body, then breaks into your bloodstream. This decreases the blood flow, which typically induces a feeling of lightheadedness." As sweat began to roll down the side of Synan's face, Gaara continued speaking calmly and evenly. "Once the majority of the sand has entered the bloodstream, it begins to break out, causing massive hemorrhaging. It is supposed to kill the target." At that moment Synan could only cry out in pain as his entire body lit on fire with pain he couldn't even fully comprehend.

"You interrupted me earlier," Gaara stated, ceasing the assault of the sand within Synan's body. "I said that there are two kinds of people in this world. There are those people who are worthwhile, and those that are a waste of life. Shikamaru-san is the former, and you are the latter."

Synan's throat was raw and sore, but he forced himself to laugh harshly. "You may kill me, but you cannot win! Eventually, you will all destroy yourselves! Village will be pitted against village, and in the end all shinobi will be no more than corpses!"

"Perhaps," Gaara answered simply. He raised both hands, his palms facing each other and closed his eyes. Sand began to curl between his palms, forming intricate patterns of whirling lines that began to flash faster than Synan could even follow. Abruptly Gaara's eyes opened, looking directly at Synan. "But I doubt it."

At that moment the sphere of sand shattered, the agonizingly sharp patterns flooding out toward him. In an instant Synan was shredded before he could even truly understand his pain. His body exploded, but a sphere of sand caught the blood. Temari didn't like it when the courtyard got blood on it. Retracting his sand, Gaara returned it to the container upon his back.

For a long moment the Kazekage remained in the courtyard, considering his attacker, and then Gaara turned and vanished inside the house.

* * *

It was the cold that first woke Hinata up. She was shivering slightly, and didn't realize it for a few moments even after her eyes were open. Blinking a few times, she realized that the sun was already peaking over the horizon. The night was a restless blur for her, and she didn't remember falling asleep.

But it was over, now. She slipped out of bed and immediately put on what little equipment she had taken off. Ino and Sakura had gotten more relaxed about such things when they continued to not be attacked, but she was still paranoid. Or perhaps merely the fact that nothing was happening was getting under her skin and making her antsy about all this. Was that why she hadn't been able to sleep?

Softly she slipped from the small room granted her and was almost immediately outside of their dwelling. Instead of making any contact with civilization they had made camp in an abandoned warehouse. After blinking away the sunlight, Hinata saw a familiar black cloak fluttering atop a nearby building.

With a graceful leap she landed beside Sasuke, who didn't move. His eyes were fixed on the rising sun, and she didn't dare interrupt his thoughts.

"I don't like waiting," he said eventually. She nodded, not looking at him, and he went on. "Something about all this seems wrong... disjointed... but I can't identify it." For the first time his eyes shifted, glancing at her. "But I have a terrible premonition about whatever is coming. I think that the conflict to come is going to be very dangerous. I'm not going to be able to protect anyone else, because I'll need all of my strength to stay alive." He paused for some time, and she didn't try to say anything. "That's why I need all of you to not die. Can you do that for me?"

"I'll try," Hinata told him. He was being so somber...

At that moment there was a sharp spike of chakra that made both shinobi's heads whirl about to face it. It was as if two forces were battling, swirling about one another in a nearly meaningless pattern. Immediately Hinata and Sasuke dropped to the street below, and Sakura and Ino joined them almost immediately, looking only slightly groggy.

With a swift hand movement Sasuke ordered all of them toward the disturbed chakra. It was not far, and they reached it almost immediately. Alighting in a small park, they scanned the area, looking for signs of a conflict. Nothing.

"A decoy," Sasuke muttered.

"You're right," Sakura nodded, eyes narrow. "But what good did they accomplish? If they wanted an ambush, they've already lost their advantage."

"Maybe they're just trying to throw us off guard," Ino suggested. "I know this waiting sure it getting to me. If we aren't thinking well we won-"

"Matthew-san," Sasuke said abruptly. "He's still at the warehouse."

"S." Ino was already leaping from her position the way they had came. "When I left he was still asleep." They could all sense chakra being utilized with lethal intent within the warehouse.

"Do you think he'll be able to run away?" Sakura's question to Sasuke was left hanging in the air.

In a storm of movement the shinobi arrived, tearing through the doorway and entering the main warehouse itself. Ino and Sakura were in the lead and stopped together, almost making Hinata run into them. She managed to stop, but couldn't see. Focusing, she looked through them and immediately caught her breath.

Bodies lay about the warehouse, none of them looking injured but all of them unmoving. Matthew stood in the center of the carnage with his back to them, each of his hands loosely at his side. Hearing them enter, he turned to glance at them, readjusting his glasses as his did so. The motion made the scalpels in his hands glitter in the light.

"You're alright!" Sakura said, surprisingly joyously. Matthew's expression did not change from a deadly serious countenance.

"I didn't know you could fight," Ino commented. His only response was to flick both his hands, returning two scalpels to his sleeves. Examining the bodies closer, Hinata realized that each had incredibly fine cuts through the spine. "Isn't that pretty impressive, Sasuke-kun?"

At that moment Sasuke dissolved like smoke, making Ino give a slight cry to surprise.

"He didn't follow us here," Sakura observed. "That's been an illusion this entire time."

"There will be more of them," Matthew said sharply, eyes narrow and obviously considering. "This force is very powerful. They were waiting until they had warriors capable of fighting you."

"That must be it!" Sakura put one hand to her chin, in deep thought. "But how are they going to-"

"There are three large chakras coming from separate directions," Hinata informed them quietly. Nodding curtly, Matthew moved past them toward the doorway, expression still unchanging.

"Where are you going?" Sakura snapped at him.

"I have something to do," Matthew told her without stopping, vanishing out the doorway. The energy that they had felt around him vanished completely. The remaining three shinobi glanced at one another.

"One of the chakras is smaller," Ino observed. "It's moving parallel to another weak one. The other one is coming from the opposite direction."

"Right," Sakura nodded, focus returning. "Hinata-chan, you take the alone one. Ino-chan and I will fight the other two and then back you up." The three shinobi vanished toward their battles.

* * *

Sasuke stood alone in the park, completely motionless. His eyes were closed, his arms folded calmly. There were a few leaves being blown around him harmlessly, but there was an unnatural air of stillness in the park.

"Who might you be?" he asked. Standing some distance behind him where there had before been no one was a tall man. Being discovered by Sasuke did not seem to startle him in the slightest. Both of them remained completely motionless, the man just watching the back of Sasuke's head through waving locks of blond hair. He was clad in a golden cloth that wrapped around him in a strange fashion.

"And you must be the famed shinobi," the other man eventually said, tone almost musical but bitter, "the legendary survivor of the Uchiha clan, Sasuke-sama."

"So I am," Sasuke answered softly, turning to glance at his opponent. "I take it that you aren't going to want anything but a fight?"

"I don't want a fight," the man answered, shaking his head. Abruptly the color in his eyes faded, leaving only white. "I want to rip you apart and watch you die!" Chakra exploded around him, a terribly unnatural force that swirled about itself, crashing and almost battling yet all in the same twisted pattern. _So that was how the deception was accomplished..._

Abruptly the man seemed to flicker, and the next second his arm was through Sasuke's chest. An instant later the shinobi vanished in a shower of dust. The battle was on.

* * *

Audriel: You could say that Matthew is somewhat apathetic, yes. However, that isn't really his dominant trait, which I would identify as "analytical." Though he has a great deal of standard intelligence, his genius resides in the ability to put information together. 

The gender question was repeated... you'll find the answer in the notes of previous chapters.

As for Lee, yes, it is still quite some time before he will appear. Hopefully Gaara's role in this chapter will tide you over for the time being.

The remainder of this note is regarding the review of Waffles01: Remember, of course, that rank is not a measure of power. I believe it is fairly obvious that Hinata is stronger than Ino, but I do understand your point on the subject.

This story is based primarily on the manga, and though that will harmthose who watch the animefairly little, it does have a few effects. My setting is years after Naruto ends (though it hasn't, yet), and presumably Itachi is dead at this point. I left the details of his death intentionally vague because I'm really not certain how Kishimoto will handle it.

On the battles to relationships ratio, I think that this reflects more on me than on my gender, though it is a legitimate point to raise. This story really has too much action; there were more characters than I would typically use and a number of factors that led to imbalance.

Onmy age, you are essentially correct, though I'm on the older end of that spectrum. It is good to hear your guess, I suppose, because I am trying to write using a high school vocabulary. Generally speaking, going further than that in a non-technical piece of writing doesn't help anyone.


	17. Melee

I apologize for the delay. I am without excuse, but hopefully this chapter will make up for it, as it is one of the best. Not only does it set up for some of the most important battles in the story, it includes one that I like for unusual reasons. A few assorted comments follow the chapter.

* * *

Chapter Seventeen: Melee

They were on a collision course, Hinata realized almost instantly. Her opponent was tearing directly down the street in her direction, and she was running toward him. Furthermore, her opponent had sensed her and didn't seem inclined to stop.

That suited her just fine. If she could get within striking distance of him quickly the battle could be ended much quicker. She shifted chakra to her palms for a lethal inner coils strike and waited. When her opponent first became visible in the distance there was only a fraction of a second before they struck.

Or before they should have struck. At the last second the other shinobi sent a burst of chakra from his foot, making him shoot high into the air above her. Startled by the tactic, Hinata skidded to a halt, then was forced to leap away almost instantly as a shuriken bit the ground where she had been.

She glanced up just in time to see her opponent land opposite her on the street. He wore only a thin grey robe that looked as though it would offer no protection at all. Still, there was a very dangerous chakra about him, and from his initial actions he knew she couldn't take him lightly.

"We know who you are," the warrior told her with a slight smirk. "We've been analyzing how you fight, and I got called in to take you out. This should be a short battle." Forcing herself not to be intimidated, Hinata dropped into a fighting position. Instantly her opponent's smirk widened. "Oh, I'm not going to get anywhere near you."

Without warning he hurled a hand before him. On instinct Hinata leapt away from it. She sensed an intense use of chakra by his hand, but no form of an attack where she had been. While in midair she saw her opponent's other hand thrust at her and twisted aside.

Just past her swooshed what felt like a blast of hot steam, but far hotter than any steam she had ever felt before. Invisible, but probably dangerous. At this point she landed in a crouch and rushed at her opponent, only to leap away. It was a good thing she did so, because another gust of air flew from her opponent's hand. When it struck the street where she had stood, a layer of frost formed.

Landing some distance across the street, Hinata watched her opponent carefully. He was laughing softly.

"Do you see now?" he asked. "Unless you can get close to me, you can't hurt me. I, on the other hand, have every intention of hurting you from a distance. You're pretty good at dodging, but you'll slowly wear down and-" Before he could say anything further Hinata snapped a kunai to one hand and hurled it at him.

Laughing, the shinobi easily caught it by the handle. Almost too late he sensed the shifting of chakra, and a hand was flitting at the back of his head the next instant. Just before it struck he moved directly up in a blur of sheer speed. Immediately Hinata looked above herself, only to discover that he vanished into the sky above. If he was jumping that high, it had to be a jutsu of some sort.

At that point shuriken began raining from above, forcing Hinata to dodge almost constantly. She made sure she could always see the sky, however, and hence saw the shinobi hurtling back down toward her while the shuriken were still flying. There seemed to be a shield of chakra surrounding him around which flames were leaping, so she leapt away when he landed instead of attacking.

He struck the street and devastated much of it, ripping a huge crater in the concrete. Touching off a building, Hinata hurtled toward him the next instant, but he raised both hands toward her and sent a massive blast of heat. She vanished like smoke, appearing some distance away once his blast had faded.

A bit of sweat rolled down the side of Hinta's face that had nothing to do with the heat. The stone wall behind her had partially _melted_. She was forced to dart right the next second as her opponent shot cold air from both hands toward her. One massive portion of the street was iced but Hinata was untouched.

She struck at him again, but he dissolved in a shower of mist and reappeared some distance behind her. Smirking, Hinata's opponent clapped his hands together several times, completing his jutsu. She was wearing down, slowly but surely...

* * *

"We have you now!"

Sakura and Ino didn't move at the taunt, which seemed to echo from all about them. The next instant someone running at blinding speed blazed past them across the roof of the warehouse. He cut a corner with unreal agility and continued to flash around them in a slowly contracting square. Both watched him carefully, trying to discern the moment that he would strike.

Then Sakura reached behind her head and stopped her opponent's blade before it slit the base of her skull. With a twirl of pink hair she grinned slightly at the camouflage-clad warrior behind her.

"H... how did you know?" he asked.

"Just a tip," Sakura told him, "don't say 'we' if you're trying to convince people there's only one of you."

"He's coming!" Ino called at that moment. The warrior that had been boxing them in abruptly ceased his square pattern and tore directly toward them. Sakura had no time to react, but Ino was more prepared. She slammed her hands into the ground, sending chakra rocketing up. Ground caved away before the charging warrior, forcing him to screech to a halt to avoid falling into the warehouse itself.

At that moment Sakura used her opponent's blade to hurl him across the roof. Immediately she leapt after him, kunai slashing, but he rolled out of the way. His long and thin blade slashed quickly, but Sakura leapt away, unintentionally going back to back with Ino.

"How fitting," he sneered, rising to his feet. "We heard that you often worked well as a team, but we were prepared to take you down any way we found you. Now it appears that Sakura-teme and Ino-teme will fight the Assassin and the Samurai."

"Is that what he's supposed to be?" Ino asked, looking at her opponent with slight disgust. Now that he was no longer moving so quickly, the other opponent was much more obviously a samurai. His clothing and hairstyle were traditional, and a katana was sheathed at his waist. He did not respond in any way.

"The two of us are designed to be the perfect team against the two of you," the Assassin explained. "He's not as good as his master, of course, but when it comes to intelligent combat he's good enough for the likes of you. Personally, I think we can take you out quickly and finish of Sasuke-yarou."

"Stay away from Sasuke-kun!" Sakura and Ino yelled as one. The Assassin laughed softly, then pointed his blade at the two of them. Something mechanical shifted, and the blade extended to double its length. "No more talk."

Knowing that Sakura was going to leave her position, Ino didn't spend any time there either. Running sideways, she hurled several shuriken toward her opponent in a tight swarm. The Samurai didn't have time to draw his weapon, but he did raise the sheath in the way; the shuriken embedded themselves in it.

Though the Samurai drew and attacked in his next movement, Ino easily evaded by flipping into the air above him. In midair she hurled several kunai at him, this time in a wider pattern. With his blade already out, the Samurai barely managed to defend himself by bashing away the weapons.

A moment later Ino's kick landed squarely in the center of his back, sending him skidding across the roof and crashing into one of the sides. Flipping two more weapons to her hands, she smirked and waited for him to get up.

Across the roof, Sakura barely managed to duck beneath the Assassin's swiping blade. It had an incredible reach, but its weakness was that it could only attack in a few ways. That, and how thin it was. Evading another swipe, Sakura took off across the roof toward him. As expected, he brought the full length of his blade down, aiming to slice her in half.

Just before it struck Sakura raised a kunai over her head. The long blade crashed into it and promptly snapped. Shocked, the Assassin could not prevent the remaining half of his blade from embedding itself in the roof. Still moving forward, Sakura ran part way up the blade and sliced past him, leaving him to fall in a bloody heap.

Whirling about, Sakura glanced across the roof. Silly Ino hadn't managed to beat the Samurai yet. Even as she watched, though, Ino managed to catch her opponent's wrists as he tried an overhand strike, then kicked him across the face. He managed to keep his grip on his sword, but still flew to the side. When he rose he looked worn down and his face was bruised.

"Hey!" Sakura called to him mockingly. "Your buddy here already died! Too bad, eh?"

"Finally." The Samurai's voice was deep and gravelly, and what he said shocked both of the other two. Shifting his sword to only one hand, he wiped his face with the back of his fingers. When his hand returned to his side, what had appeared to be a bruise on his face was gone.

Sakura saw his feet as they shifted and then made a bolting motion, but the next thing she knew he was across the roof and slashing diagonally at her. It took every iota of speed she had to duck the attack, and it still sliced a bit of her hair.

His strike still not complete, the samurai somehow changed the direction of his blade. He bashed Sakura with the back end of it, sending her hurtling off the edge of the building and crashing through the wall of a nearby taller building. Still wielding his blade in only one hand, he raised it to point directly at Ino.

"Next."

* * *

His opponent evaded the kunai sweep with an agile bending maneuver, but Sasuke let his weapon fly from his hand. It slashed through the man's temple, making him shatter to dust the next moment. Surprisingly fast work.

Straightening, Sasuke glanced across the clearing to where his opponent was just dropping to land on a tree high above. He merely glanced up at the other man, who remained perched there, eyes still blank. Abruptly both of them flew into movement, Sasuke leaping forward and the man sweeping down.

Just before they collided in midair the blond-haired man uttered a strange cry. Something white exploded from his back, and he changed direction, shooting forward and slashing across Sasuke. A very swift movement and a very dangerous attack. Of course, he had managed to replace himself with a clone, but it had been close.

Meanwhile, his opponent landed lightly on a tree on the opposite side, and Sasuke got a better glimpse of his attack. Two massive, pure white wings had emerged from the other shinobi's back, arching on either side of him and ripping gashes in his robes. Before Sasuke had time to consider their construction the warrior leaped again, flashing with blinding speed as he had before.

More prepared, Sasuke front flipped into the air just past the attack. While upside down he finished his hand seals and sent a massive column of flame flying from his mouth. It caught up to the warrior just as he landed, hitting him dead on.

Both wings snapped around Sasuke's opponent just before the flames struck, and to Sasuke's surprise they dissipated off it. Before he could change his position his opponent flickered out of sight, appearing just in front of him and unfurling his wings. They hit Sasuke like a mountain, sending him flying back and crashing through a tree. The instant he struck the ground he rolled, but he got to his feet only in time to see his opponent flying in another amazingly fast strike.

Unfortunately, Sasuke's speed was also not to be trifled with. He ducked almost instantly, holding a kunai just above his head. His opponent slashed directly along it, but the chakra around him prevented the kunai from doing any damage. It did change his course, sending him higher into the air.

Whirling, Sasuke hurled two kunai that pierced each of his opponent's wings. To his surprise, they shattered, raining down a flood of razor sharp feathers that dropped directly toward him. For just an instant his foot shifted as if to run away, but at the last second he held his ground and merely sent a shot of chakra that created enough wind to slant the feathers' fall away from him.

The next moment his opponent struck from behind... as expected. Sasuke dropped forward to his hands, kicking backward and feeling a solid connection with flesh. As the other shinobi fell back, Sasuke did a handspring forward, picking up eight feathers from the ground as he did so.

Sasuke twisted the moment he landed and hurled the feathers as one toward his opponent, who was just barely gaining his feet. For a single instant Sasuke caught a glimpse of his opponent's eyes and realized he had made a mistake, and then chakra erupted. The feathers were knocked aside in midair, two of them returning in Sasuke's direction. One he managed to catch but the other sliced through his side.

Glancing at his opponent again, Sasuke growled slightly. The other warrior's wings had returned, but other wings had surfaced from his body as well; smaller wings arched from his arms, sides and chest. Each of the wings shimmered with the same light, and then a windstorm burst across the ground toward him.

Even though Sasuke braced himself against it, he quickly realized his situation was worse than he had initially imagined. It was not merely one gust of wind, but a continually blowing force. He was essentially pinned here, and his opponent was not about to pass up on an opportunity to strike him.

In that case, he merely had to strike first. Managing to slip a shuriken from his sleeve, Sasuke hurled it into the wind. Almost instantly it was blown back at him, and it would have struck him had he not dashed to the right.

Unfortunately, the warrior also shifted to his left, keeping the focus of the terrible wind from his wings on Sasuke. No longer braced, Sasuke was tossed backward and smashed into the ground. There he dug one hand into the ground to prevent himself from being launched further. The other warrior's face parted in a slight smile, but before he could attack Sasuke moved once again.

Taking his hand out of the ground, Sasuke hurled a multitude of shuriken. He was instantly swept backward, but his other hand had already raised two fingers to his face. He vanished entirely, before his shuriken swept back at him.

Immediately the other warrior's eyes widened, and he whirled to face the attack he knew must be coming. Sasuke's fist was a hairsbreadth away from his face when the winds shifted direction and sent him sailing backward. For a moment the blond haired fighter grinned, and then Sasuke's shuriken hit him in the back.

Agilely Sasuke landed on the side of a tree, now that the winds had subsided. His opponent was hunched over, wincing in pain. The next moment he looked up at Sasuke, and his eyes were completely white, even the blood vessels imperceptible. All of his wings shuddered at the same instant, then expanded to twice their former length.

Standing sideways against the tree, Sasuke smiled just slightly.

* * *

Dozens of clones filled the street, all merely standing. Occasionally a blast of heat or a freezing wind would shoot from one, but then it would be still once again. In the center of the group, his target remained just as still, waiting for each and every attack and then evading it.

Already he'd learned quite a few things about her that he hadn't known before. For one, her strange white eyes gave her a wide enough field of vision that she could always see him, no matter where he attacked from. He couldn't wear her down by making her search about herself, then. For another, her attacks were dangerous. She had struck at a few of the doppelgangers and dissipated them instantly, even with the entire genjutsu supporting itself.

So far, however, she hadn't come close to hitting him. A few times she had attacked before he could fire another jutsu blast, but soon she had realized that he could jump between clones at will and that it was futile. No more futile than standing there and merely dodging, but evidently she wasn't thinking clearly.

During the battle she hadn't even touched him. He mentally gave a scornful laugh. And he had heard that Hyuga Hinata was supposed to be an extremely powerful shinobi. This battle was no more than child's play. Skipping to another one of the clones, he hurled another blast of freezing cold that she flipped back away from.

How had she dodged that? Blinking and changing locations again, the assassin replayed the attack in his mind. In just a moment she had not merely moved quickly, but skipped over space. That wasn't possible unless she was using some strange new ninjutsu... or genjutsu. Immediately his eyes narrowed, and, skipping through clones, he examined the area around himself, trying to dispel any illusions.

He found her in a thin alleyway, on one knee. She was breathing heavily from her physical exertion, but it was obviously only chakra on the field dodging his clones. It looked as though she had been there for some time, and was considerably rested. Good plan, but not good enough.

With a burst of chakra he leapt into the sky, not caring that his jutsu was falling apart behind him. High above, amid the biting winds, he hurled several more shuriken down toward her true position. She discerned the true nature of the attack and dodged, but in doing so moved out into the open. Exactly according to the plan.

When he blasted down toward the earth, this time he did not encase himself in chakra. She prepared to attack him, and he smirked broadly. Just before he touched the nearest buildings he thrust his hands out on either side of him. This time, his chakra created intense cold in one and intense heat in the other. Before she could react he smashed his hands together, making the opposites collide.

Howling winds exploded about him, a tornado forming around him with startling speed. Loose papers on the street were caught up in the winds and shredded; its sheer force kept him floating in the air above. Having sensed in intent, Hinata had leapt back, but now it was all she could do to brace herself against the winds blasting past her.

It wouldn't be enough. Grinning a bit broader, the assassin altered the flow of his power. Abruptly the winds began to pull with terrible force, ripping some stones from the street. Taken off guard, Hinata was pulled part way across the street before she dug her feet in. At this point it was probably taking all of her strength to resist. Such a shame that he had not yet used the Ultimate level of his technique...

Abruptly the wind around him shuddered. His eyes changed to an expression of shock and he tried to compensate, but it was too late. For a moment the tornado burst in full life, then it spluttered and died. Unsupported, he plummeted toward the street. _How could I have used all of my chakra? Why wasn't I paying attention to it?_

Already he was beginning to lose consciousness, but through bleary eyes he saw her turn away and bound to the top of a nearby building. She was leaving? She would not even stay to finish the job? How could-

The shinobi struck the street head first with a loud snap, and he knew no more.

* * *

Wordlessly, the young man stepped up to the front door of the building. The steel doors before him sat just as silently, unmoving and glistening slightly in the light. It was a looming but otherwise unimpressive building. At the door he paused, his feet coming to rest just before he entered. His gaze flickered to a piece of paper in his hands, then he crumpled it and let the information fall to the ground. This was the place. It was time to begin.

Unnaturally slowly, he took off his glasses and cleaned them gently, shifted his light blond hair out of his eyes and unbuttoned his outer jacket. The entire time his eyes did not move from the door before him. There was a slight pause… and then Matthew entered the building.

* * *

As you can see from the end of this chapter, those of you who requested more information about Matthew will soon get it. The next chapter will also answer the question of what he has been doing in the previous time, and to some degree why he has never mentioned his fighting skill.

To the anonymous reviewer who asked about the number of chapters: this story has already been written in its entirety, but I would rather not give a specific number of chapters, as some readers could probably make predictions about the plot based on a number. However, the number of chapters remaining is more than five and less than ten.


	18. An Eye for an Eye

Another chapter, with fewer notes than normal following.

* * *

Chapter Eighteen: An Eye for an Eye

Matthew's feet made no sound as they moved across the solid steel floor. Only the constant buzz of air conditioning could be heard in the corridor. The silence became tighter and tighter as he neared the end, where two guards stood stone-faced on either side of a large door. They did not look at him as he approached, nor did he so much as glance at them.

They were almost to each other when both sides struck, mercilessly and brutally. Sweeping forward, Matthew evaded the first man's fist. His arm almost lazily held a glittering scalpel that sliced through the back of the man's neck with clinical precision. Still without looking anywhere but forward, Matthew stepped right, evading the other man's punch.

His left arm swept up as if to backhand the guard's face, but the man jerked his head away. Flipping his hand up, Matthew grabbed the front of the man's face. All light in the corridor dimmed for a moment, then Matthew released his grip and allowed the man to fall to the floor lifelessly. Gaze not shifting even in the slightest, he stepped up to the door.

"So the prodigal returns, does he?" The voice came from behind Matthew, who froze in place, eyes shadowed by his hair.

"Hello, Uncle," Matthew answered, voice soft. Behind him, a large man began to walk forward toward him.

"I'm surprised you found us here," the man went on, voice rumbling in the corridor over the buzz of the air conditioning. "You always were a quick one, Matthew. It seems you've found some friends much stronger than you... if you truly think they'll help you then you are in the wrong.

"But I must congratulate you on coming this far. You did manage to find your mother before she could escape to another safe location. If you were not going to die so terribly soon, you might have actually been a slight hindrance to the plan."

"Where is Father?"

"That is none of your concern," Matthew's uncle laughed, cracking the knuckles of one giant hand. "I suggest that you prepare yourself for the next world."

"I would have thought that by now, Ceriman, you would have learned that I always do prepare."

The man raised one bushy eyebrow, then abruptly realized there was something strange about the steel floor beneath him. It was as if there was a pattern etched in it, but upon closer inspection he realized that it was a set of characters he did not recognize. Immediately he began to run, but a massive portion of the corridor was etched with them. All of them burst into flame the next moment, consuming him and leaving nothing to even fall to the floor.

Silhouetted against the raging inferno, Matthew opened the door before him.

"Well, well, well... I did not expect to see my son again so soon." As before, Matthew did not look at who was speaking to him. He did not need to look. The lights within the room slowly began to increase in intensity, until the dozens of men in it were visible. On the opposite side, sitting in a large swiveling chair, was a woman. She was quite ordinary except for her long blond hair and the poisonous smile on her face. "Alive, no less. And what have you done with your hair?"

"I did not expect to see you so soon either, Mother," Matthew responded, voice even softer. Around the room, the numerous armed men shifted nervously.

"To what do I owe this visit?" the woman asked, leaning her head on one arm. "Surely you have not truly come back to us. You know what that would entail. Or perhaps you understand that it is futile to try to fight us?"

"Fight you?" Matthew asked. "I have no intention of trying to fight you."

"Such a pleasant surprise... I had expected you to be far more unreason-"

"I intend to kill you!" With those words Matthew finally looked up, his eyes deadened yet somehow terrifying. It was as if something in him cracked, releasing a terrible force. Immediately the men in the room attacked, swords sliding from sheaths and kunai rasping from pouches. The ones to his right or left were dead before they touched their weapons.

"Now is the time, Mother," Matthew called, slicing forward with dangerous speed. A kunai nicked his shoulder and blood trailed away from it. "I told you that I would return and end this one day, and today is that day. Now you must reap what you have sown!"

A massive warrior swung a huge axe, aiming to taking his head off entirely. With a flickering motion Matthew stabbed a finger into his opponent's shoulder, and the warrior's arm instantly dangled uselessly. Matthew darted past him, being slashed from multiple sides but ignoring the blows, still speaking, gaze never flickering from his target. The woman's eyes were wide; she was pressed against the back of her seat.

"You taught a pupil to kill, and his lessons are over." Matthew's voice was completely unmodulated. Something in his eyes seemed calm, something horribly cold blooded and beyond rage. "This is what happens when you tell them to take an eye for an eye. You've made yourself just as evil as everything you hate. This is the end!"

Suddenly he was looming before her, not moving, as if not quite believing he was truly there. His clothing was ripped and torn, his body bleeding from a multitude of wounds, his hair tinged with blood. Behind him lay a mass of dying bodies and weapons, before him sat a terrified woman.

"I... I raised you!" she shouted into his face. "Without me, you would never have had any life! You have no right-"

"Right?" Matthew demanded, voice cutting her off. "You have no right to say that! I was not your child, Mother, I was your tool. You taught me that problems must be solved by destruction, and I am only acting as you have taught."

"Do you have any idea what you risk by killing me? Do you tr-"

"No more," Matthew stated, hand flying in a lethal strike. When it was finished his body shuddered as if something had left it and he sagged in place. For the first time emotion touched the dead calm of his eyes, a glistening sadness. When he spoke again, it was no more than a whisper. "No more."

With those words, he fell backward and lay still.

Shuriken flew from Sasuke's fingers in quick succession, three of them slicing at varied places in an attempt to compensate for his opponent's dodging. The blond haired man moved swifter than he had imagined, backflipping away from all of them. Before his feet hit the ground he sent chakra bursting along his wings and charged.

Instantly he was careening through the air with unreal speed, far closer to Sasuke than he had been on his previous attempts. If all went well, the winged warrior speculated, he could probably sever his opponent in half in one swoop. He perceived that something changed about his opponent's eyes with a red glow, but disregarded it. Any jutsu he wanted to pull off now was far too late. It couldn't possible matter.

Just as his opponent swept up upon him, Sasuke moved with lightning speed, grabbing the edges of his opponent's wings and twisting them around in the opposite direction. The blond haired man crashed directly into him the next moment, sending him careening backward even as he impaled himself on his own wings.

As soon as he got his footing Sasuke leapt into the air, away from his dying opponent. To his surprise, even bleeding heavily the man leapt up after him, wings moving him faster than even Sasuke could jump. This one was lethal when nearly dead.

The man's arms clamped on Sasuke, locking in place. At that moment his wings folded, and both crashed into the ground. Pinning his opponent in place, the man began to laugh, his lips grinning bloodily, his eyes dancing with nothing but white.

"You think you've won just because you'll kill me," he rasped, "but you're wrong. I might die, but you're dying with me. And once you're dead, I don't have a good reason to live anyway." Behind him, the man's wings began working, shifting strangely and slowly building chakra... a jutsu using only his wings?

"Mommy? Mommy, what's that?"

Briefly the man's gaze flickered to the side, taking in the terror-struck mother and her young child. Neither of them moved, eyes locked on the two men who lay in the park, blood and weapons scattered around them, dangerous energy visible in the air. An immensely dangerous force seemed to constrict about their throats...

"You think they'll stop me?" the man hissed at Sasuke. His teeth were gritted; the words came out forcefully. "Nothing is going to stop the Seraph Sphere from destroying everything in this park!" At that moment his chakra contracted, and his wings flashed a golden color.

"A suicidal jutsu, eh?" Sasuke asked, voice ringing hollow. The side of his head began to fade away. "You aren't going to like this."

For a moment the man gaped in horror as Sasuke vanished from him, then his wings exploded in a sphere of shards that ripped through everything nearby. His vision was briefly annihilated by the pain, and then he could dimly see the destroyed park around him. The trees have been shredded, most of the ground ripped apart, a few benches shattered... but no mother and little girl. Where had they gone?

There was a soft tap, and the man exerted all his willpower to turn his head and look toward it. Sasuke had just landed quite some distance down a nearby street, the mother and her little girl in his arms. Gently he set them down, then he vanished in a blur of chakra. He appeared a hair from the man's face the next second, a kunai in his hand.

"Why kill me?" the man choked, ignoring part of a feather lodged in his throat. "I'll be dead in a few minutes, anyway."

"You_ are_ almost entirely out of chakra," Sasuke observed. _Probably can't do any more harm..._

"Why?" the man asked. Something in his voice seemed so confused, so desperate, that it made Sasuke turn back to him. The Uchiha merely raised an eyebrow. "Why did you save them? Do they matter to you?"

"They have nothing to do with this," Sasuke answered. "They don't deserve to be killed by our battle. I'm not going to let people like you kill anyone else."

Chuckling, the man closed his eyes and breathed painfully for a moment. Sasuke didn't leave, feeling somehow as if it was not over. Some distance down the street, the mother had already scooped up her child and fled. It didn't matter.

"I really wanted to kill you, Sasuke-san," the man eventually said. "I've spent my entire life training to be able to destroy you. I went through operations more painful than I could have ever imagined. Now it seems that you will continue to live... perhaps, that is what is meant to be."

"Why did you want to kill me?" Sasuke asked, folding his arms within his cloak.

"There was another Uchiha I met once," the man rasped. "I don't know how he was related to you. I didn't really care. He had a mission in my village, to kill a leader that was popular but leading a rebel faction against the government. The people tried to defend him... and that shinobi slaughtered them all."

Blood welled up in the man's throat, but he coughed violently, now speaking as if he desperately needed to. "My parents died, and I watched them. The more I learned about shinobi, the more I thought they were all cold-blooded killers. That was why I vowed to destroy all of them. Especially your family."

"And how did that bring you to Ragnarok Incorporated?" Sasuke bent down beside the man.

"Do you really think you'll get information out of me?" the man scoffed, with a disturbing grin. As silence stretched on, however, his face became strangely contorted by an emotion Sasuke couldn't completely understand. "But maybe... maybe we were wrong. Alright, Uchiha, I'll tell you everything I know. You, at the very least, aren't like the shinobi I knew. My life was wasted, but perhaps my death does not have to be.

"You said Ragnarok Incorporated before. The name doesn't matter, the corporation has many faces. Most people are kept completely in the dark about their operations, if they know anything at all. They're all motivated by different things, and they don't care about any common goal. I was pretty far in, and even I don't know a lot.

"What I do know is that all of it is controlled by one family. They're very big, but very tightly knit. While they're not really shinobi, they're very powerful in the politics of all five major countries. One way or another, they've managed to marry or lie their way into the leadership of all five.

"I don't know much about that." When he drew breath, the man very nearly fell unconscious. He fought away the darkness and continued. "I'm running out of time. This is what's important: I don't know why, but they want to kill every shinobi on the face of the planet. They've been gathering every warrior they can get for years, anyone that can fight and hates shinobi. With the resources of all five countries, and the crime syndicates of each, they've gathered an army. They have a lot of Missing-nin, but also a core of samurai trained by-" the man coughed up blood and gave out a pained cry.

"Not... enough time. Please, you have to stop them." He was almost begging now, tears running down his cheeks and mixing with his blood. "Their own son... you can't imagine what they did to him... there are more monsters like me out there... please, you can't let them, can't-"

Sasuke touched a finger to the man's mouth, quieting him. "Thank you," Sasuke said softly. "You were a noble warrior indeed." For a moment the man seemed stunned, then he just barely nodded. After a few moments his breath stopped. _They are not entirely evil,_ Sasuke realized. _They merely manipulate that which is good. While that is their strength, it will also be their downfall._

For a moment Sasuke paused, eyes fastened on something in the distance; there was the beginning of something in them, a flame that burned within his soul. At the beginning of the conversation his cloak had been severely ripped and torn, but now it was whole once more, though his skin was still bruised and cut beneath it. After pondering for a long while, Sasuke closed the man's eyes and rose.

The instant he did so multiple shuriken flitted toward him. He was immediately in combat mode, catching them and identifying the attacker. His new opponent was a strange warrior whose body seemed lumpy and not completely natural. Already he was rushing forward, attacking with a long blade.

Almost lazily Sasuke grabbed the blade as it swept at him and hurled its owner into a nearby tree. The shinobi, if he could be called that, landed on his feet and hissed at Sasuke. He slowly raised a hand, Sasuke watching him closely the entire time, then flicked something to the side, not even in Sasuke's direction.

A spark touched the blond haired man's body, and he exploded in golden flames. In an instant he was consumed, leaving only scorched earth. The new warrior snickered.

"There goes any proof you had against us," he jeered. When Sasuke glanced at him he abruptly gulped and bolted away, running from the park in an instant. Sasuke gave chase the next moment, tearing after him.

_He's not strong, but he's fast,_ Sasuke observed. _Not really a warrior, just an agent. But with the lead he got on me, I might not be able to catch him._ It wasn't worth spending too much effort on the idiot, but killing him would be fairly satisfying.

Abruptly Sasuke narrowed his eyes, sensing another chakra entering the chase. It was coming from an angle, as if also pursuing this man. Focusing for a moment, Sasuke realized that it was Hinata. She seemed to be fine, though having just gone through a battle. In that case she had probably looked for someone nearby to help.

Excellent. Putting on a burst of speed, Sasuke shifted his path slightly. The agent would sense Hinata fairly soon, and then alter his own course. If all went well, that would negate the advantage he had began with, and restrict his movement. Considering that he wasn't even as fast as Sasuke, that would be enough.

Around him, the battles were coming to an end. Sakura and Ino were blocked from him, but it was only a matter of time. Very soon, this phase would be over. Very soon.

* * *

A number of questions were asked regarding Hinata's most recent battle, and as it will not be mentioned further I will explain it here: her opponent's strategy was such that it completely shut down hers, and she recognized this. But this caused him to become over arrogant and reckless. She adapted her strategy so that he used all his chakra in a short period of time, culminating in his final attack. By this point, however, he had exhausted his supply, and fell to his death. 

Kankuro didn't have much of an opportunity to show his new abilities, and he doesn't do so further in this story. This is partially because I have never really liked Kankuro, partially because you can only take puppetry so far (and Akatsuki has taken it more than far enough). Sorry for those of you who enjoy his character.

As for Sasuke and Hinata… you'll be finding out about that very soon.


	19. Relational Truth

In accordance with the new site regulations, I will be utilizing the new "Review Response" system. Those of you who review while logged in can probably expect an e-mail in whatever account you used for If I have something I need to say to all readers it will still come after the chapter, but I may at times have nothing to say (as is the case for this chapter).

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Chapter Nineteen: Relational Truth

Hinata touched off a building and immediately bounded into the air again. For just a moment at her highest she could see the warrior she was pursuing. They were about equal in speed, but he was being forced to move along the streets, which hindered him. Not that it really mattered; Sasuke had caught on and was going to pursue him anyway.

After her own battle, Hinata had immediately began scrying for the others. She couldn't find Sakura and Ino; it was as if a huge fog of chakra had descended over the area where they had been before. Sasuke was easier to find, though his explosive chakra had died down after a while.

But before she had arrived another chakra had appeared. It was a fairly large one, though to her it seemed more afraid than anything else. In any case, it quickly fled, and Sasuke gave chase. From her position, she had decided to try and cut the new opponent off, and it appeared that the plan was working well.

A black streak burst from a nearby street toward the running man, and Hinata increased her own speed. Now that the escaping warrior could no longer choose the path they took, Sasuke would be upon him very quickly. If he was intelligent he'd stand and fight, but he might keep running and get mowed down.

Then the fleeing warrior began building chakra, glancing over his shoulder with frightened but dangerous eyes. He leapt into the air, and when he landed he had gotten significantly further away from them; the next moment he leapt again. Narrowing his eyes, Sasuke hurled a shuriken directly to the side. Hinata blinked, unsure what he meant to do.

When the running man landed again, he did so just as the shuriken whirred from the side. It severed his foot in an instant, and he collapsed to the ground. Quite suddenly Hinata and Sasuke were coming up upon him. On her last jump Hinata merely landed on the edge of a building and watched. Most likely it would be over quickly, and she didn't want to get in Sasuke's way.

Flipping onto his back, the enemy shinobi immediately jerked his hands into his weapons pouches. Undaunted, Sasuke continued forward. He ran directly into the assault of shimmering projectiles, weaving and knocking them aside with a deadly grace. It seemed in a fraction of a second he had crossed the distance to his opponent, without a scratch, and chakra was exploding from him.

His hand bit entirely through his opponent's chest, going out the other side in a shower of blood. For a moment the enemy shinobi gasped in pain... then he reacted, his body jerking unnaturally and contorting. His chest seemed to explode in a red and silver shower. Long, serrated tentacles ripped from him, lashing around Sasuke. Kunai were flung from his body, weapons slashing through the air in a deadly sphere.

When the explosion of raw death ended, the shinobi was no more than a tattered shell. His metallic tentacles slid off Sasuke as what remained of him collapsed to the ground. Sasuke himself was still standing, as if stunned. All his clothing had been slashed through and was stained with red; many weapons were still embedded in his body.

Ever so slowly he fell backward, collapsing onto the street. Hinata gasped, still unable to make herself move. When he finally struck the ground with a wet thump her trance was broken, allowing her to leap to the ground and rush across the street to his side. For the moment, she couldn't force herself to focus on any other opponents, or the mission or anything besides the fact that Sasuke might be dead.

She bent down beside him and brushed aside his hair... his eyes were blank. Shuddering slightly, she slumped completely to the street. Her Byukagen activated subconsciously, scanning the area surrounding her for opponents, her senses were all on edge, but her heart was gone. Sasuke wouldn't have wanted her to be hindered by his death, but she realized that she couldn't help it.

There were no other opponents. It seemed as if her grief formed a barrier that shielded her from all such things. At least she could have this brief time to herself, before it would all begin again. Tears were leaking out of her eyes, and she couldn't stop them, didn't want to stop them.

Now that he was dead, she might as well cry. It didn't matter if she loved him or not, he couldn't be annoyed by her. She truly hoped that he went to the next world thinking she was his friend; at least she could know that she succeeded in that. But his absence hurt her more than she had expected, left her emotionally crippled. Sighing from the bottom of her soul, she dropped forward to rest her head on his chest.

It dispersed in a shower of mist before her. Instantly Hinata straightened, eyes wide. That could only mean one thing, and the prospect terrified her. Despite her awareness, she still flinched slightly when the words came.

"Stop crying." She was glad she didn't need to look to see him there behind her, completely uninjured, the only blood on him his opponent's. Glad because she really didn't want him to see her like this, even if he knew. His eyes made it quite evident that he _knew_, that he understood everything she felt. She had tried so hard not to be like the rest of them, and now all of it was for nothing. Because of one stupid mistake; she should have guessed he had evaded the attack, it was one of the most basic shinobi abilities. But now it was too late, and he knew.

"I-I'm sorry, Sasuke-san," she said, almost pleading, hoping that he would forgive her. Her voice continued rapidly, spilling out in her defense. "I didn't... I didn't mean to, really. I didn't want to annoy you, but... but... I was trying not to fall in love with you but I couldn't help it. I ha-had finally done something right but now it's ruined and I'm just like the rest of them and-"

She had been about to raise a hand to hide her face, but it never arrived there. Slender fingers held it firmly in place. Despite herself she looked over her shoulder to find Sasuke kneeling beside her.

"Please stop," he whispered. "Hinata... please stop." There was something in his voice she hadn't ever heard before, and she abruptly realized that it was sorrow. The next moment she received a shock as she realized that he was feeling that sorrow for her. His eyes held nothing but compassion for her; no anger, no annoyance. "You don't need to be sad... it's alright."

"It's alright?" she asked, not wanting to meet his gaze but finding she couldn't do anything else. "You... you mean...?"

"You always think so little of yourself," Sasuke went on softly, gently wiping a tear from her face. "I don't like to see you so upset." He cared? He actually cared about her? "But you don't have to be. I don't mind."

"But... I-I thought you didn't like people chasing after you..."

"I don't. But you aren't chasing, Hinata. I may not want to be chased... but that doesn't mean I don't want to be found." He was still gently holding her wrist, and he used it to help her shakily to her feet. Not certain she was emotionally stable enough to stand on her own, Hinata timidly hugged him. His arms embraced her gently, and didn't move for some time.

"Th-thank you, Sasuke."

Several sources of chakra abruptly appeared on the edges of her senses, leaping over the rooftops toward them. Immediately but carefully Sasuke stepped away, his gaze flickering toward the hostile energies. Once again, his eyes were hard and focused, all trace of what had just happened completely gone... no, not gone, Hinata realized. It was still there, it had just taken a different form.

For the first time in several days, a slight smile appeared on Hinata's face. Channeling chakra into her feet, she leapt into battle.

* * *

Sakura carefully watched from above, kunai in hand, waiting for the proper moment to strike. She would probably have only a split second with surprise on her side; their opponent was obviously swifter than he had first appeared. Ino, meanwhile, was fighting him on a nearby rooftop.

The battle was going well, and Sakura began to smile just slightly. Perhaps she wouldn't be necessary after all. Though when Ino and the Samurai went hand to hand the Samurai easily disarmed her, Ino had begun constantly using genjutsu to evade damage. Right now he wasn't doing any more than draining his stamina.

Even as the thought left Sakura's mind, so did hope that this battle would be over quickly. In retrospect she realized that the Samurai's apparently random sword slashes formed a subtle dance... a dance that built up chakra. This revelation was far too late, as he abruptly drove the point of his sword into the ground under him. A massive shockwave exploded from him, smashing Ino directly and tossing her across the roof like a rag doll.

Jumping off the roof crumbling under him, the Samurai landed already running, blade glinting at his side. He had nearly crossed the distance to Ino when Sakura attacked. It took every ounce of strength she had not to cry out, but she managed to send multiple weapons to intercept him silently.

At the last second the Samurai looked up. Instead of slashing down he slashed up, batting aside the projectiles before they could touch him. His momentum carried him past Ino and over the edge of the roof, where he vanished.

With a quick hop Sakura landed on the roof and helped Ino to their feet. The next instant both felt a dangerous chakra explode beneath them and broke in opposite directions. Something ripped through the building from below, and when Sakura looked back she realized a huge gash had been ripped out of it. Silence followed, broken only by parts of the building slowly falling. Ino and Sakura watched from opposite sides of the crack.

Abruptly the Samurai blurred into existence from the crack, and instantly both shinobi hurled shuriken at him. By whirling violently he managed to knock them all aside, then he landed just beside the crack easily, blade again sheathed. Without moving any closer to Ino, he abruptly swung his blade through the air in a tight arc. An invisible shock wave flitted from it, sending Ino flying backward.

In that instant Sakura dashed forward, a kunai in one hand thrusting. The Samurai turned in a flash, bringing his blade down on her head, and Sakura grinned. With a single motion she raised a hand in its path and stabbed her kunai into her opponent's side.

With a slight cry of pain, the larger warrior bashed her hand and the weapon aside. His weapon was still stopped by Sakura's hand, sheathed in chakra. Recovering from the shock surprisingly quickly, he slashed at her from another angle, but she deflected the attack just as easily and then leapt back.

Before he could pursue her, Ino acted from another side of the roof. Her hands finished a seal and then a slashing wind slammed into the Samurai. At the last second he raised his arms against it, holding his ground, and both of the female shinobi gawked as he was unmoved by the vicious wind. _Such terrible strength…_

When the jutsu faded the samurai lowered his arms and gave them a lethal expression. Again he bolted across the roof with incredible speed, but this time Sakura didn't give way. Each time he struck, the chakra around her hand turned aside his blow harmlessly. Eventually he stepped back, breathing heavily.

"I'm surprised how much trouble you caused us," Sakura told him. "You were certainly dangerous, waving that blade of yours around. It's too bad you never learned that a smart opponent will eventually figure out how to stop your attacks."

"You talk too much," the Samurai grated. At that instant he rushed forward, blade flying from its sheath again. Midway to Sakura it burst into flame. Her eyes widened in shock, and she could do no more than be struck by the massive attack that sent her flying from the edge of the building.

Ino had been rushing him from the opposite side, intending to stab him in the back, and quickly skidded to a halt. His blade lashed in her direction as well, but she stepped back from the attack. The swath of flame before her seemed to leap, and abruptly she caught fire.

With a yelp and a backward leap, Ino tried to beat the fire out. Meanwhile, the Samurai charged again. This time he was interrupted by a massive shuriken hurled by Sakura from the side. He intercepted the weapon with his own blade, and though it pushed him back the shuriken fell to the ground harmlessly.

By this point Ino had vanished, and when the Samurai glanced back toward Sakura he realized she was gone as well. Narrowing his eyes, he resheathed his blade, closed his eyes and ceased to move.

Some distance away, Sakura landed just beside Ino softly.

"This guy is tough," she breathed. Ino just nodded weakly. "We need to both attack at once; he can deal with us alone." Another nod. "Alright, then. I'll be taking the left. On three, ready?"

Both blurred from their vantage point, snapping into being on either side of the samurai. Instantly he struck, violently slashing through both of them. As both bodies broke apart into chakra, the real warriors struck from opposite sides. He managed to deflect Ino's blow with his sword, but Sakura's got through his outer sphere of defense. She wasn't going to hit him, though...

But she wasn't aiming for him. Her own kunai struck the handle of his blade, sending it flying out of sight. A shiver went over the Samurai's body, and in the instant he hesitated Ino struck, fist flying for his head.

Recovering, the Samurai caught her arm, immobilizing it in a vice-like grip. She, however, merely grinned at him.

"A samurai and his sword are supposed to be one, aren't they?" Ino asked, smile still on her face. "How well are you going to be able to fight without your blade, I wonder?" With those words her body gave way in a puff of smoke. Already Sakura was attacking from the opposite side, and the Samurai only barely managed to push her swipe aside.

Ino was striking from behind, aiming a punch at the back of his head. Without looking the Samurai raised a hand to catch her fist, making her grin once again. Big mistake. Just before she struck, a thin blade slid into her hand. She gripped it just as it stabbed into his palm.

Blinking, Sakura attacked again. Had she really seen what she thought she did? Ino's blade had impaled his hand, yet it was like she had somehow missed. In any case, the Samurai was forced to raise one arm to block Ino's secondary strike. While his arm was extended Sakura struck, aiming to sever his arm from his body.

She hit, and her blade passed directly through. Her opponent's arm faded away before her weapon. _An illusion? He didn't create an illusionary body, he just created an illusionary body part! Then where is his real ar_-

Something closed around her neck painfully, keeping her in midair. A bit of chakra dissipated before her face, revealing the Samurai's arm in its true position. She struggled with his grip, and discovered it was unyielding. His fingers were squeezing harder, and she realized that he had caught her just before she had taken a breath. Everything was getting blurry, and she felt strength leaving her body...

The pressure released suddenly. Sakura had a moment to see the Samurai trying to dodge forward but Ino behind him, a kunai in hand trailing blood from the Samurai's back, before she collapsed to the ground. She was still feeling weak, but the Samurai appeared more interested in getting away from them than attacking her.

"Got him good that time," Ino grinned, offering Sakura a hand up. "He is a lot weaker without his sword. Let's finish him off now before he gets smart enough to think about getting his toy back."

"The sword is an extension of the samurai's body," the Samurai spoke abruptly from the opposite side of the roof. "It is not a toy."

"Really?" Sakura asked him. "I was thinking more like-" Abruptly she cut off as Ino gave a cry of pain. Head whirling, Sakura saw half of a bloody blade emerging from Ino's upper arm. On her face was frozen an expression of pain; behind her the blade floated in midair, no hands holding it.

Next the blade swung directly up, but Ino vanished before it ripped from her shoulder. She appeared some distance away and collapsed. Undaunted, the blade instantly swung at Sakura, who barely dodged away from it. Now not tied to a body, it was free to execute impossible twists in midair, slashing away at Sakura and driving her back across the roof.

Meanwhile, the Samurai moved to Ino's body and pulled her into the air by her neck. Sakura gave a dismayed cry, but realized that it was all she could do to stay alive against the chakra-swung blade, much less help her friend. She forced tears away from her eyes, trying to keep just ahead of the deadly silver flashes.

Without warning the blade stopped its attack, freezing in place. Instantly Sakura understood, felt the chakra across the roof. The Samurai and Ino were still in the same positions, but they were no longer moving. _Ino's body possessing jutsu! It worked!_ This was the only chance she was going to get, then. She had to attack now or never.

Sakura rushed across the roof, kunai flying. At the last second she swerved from her attack, catching up Ino and pulling her away. The Samurai shook himself out of the jutsu and managed to evade the thrown weapons. While the shinobi landed on the opposite side of the roof, he raised a hand and his blade flew to it.

"You were supposed to _kill_ him!" Ino hissed at Sakura. "My jutsu doesn't deal damage to me any more!"

"Saving you was more important, idiot," Sakura shot back, knocking a tear away from one eye. So annoying when she was trying to make a snappy comeback.

But their opponent was already charging them again, and they didn't have any more time to talk. He blazed across the roof, blade singing from his sheath a final time. Before either shinobi could move, flames leapt around them, trapping them in place for his blow.

_It's over,_ Ino thought abruptly. _It's all over._ Sakura was panting heavily and obviously didn't have enough chakra to pierce the flames or mount a counterattack. Her own arm was completely out of commission, and she didn't have any one-handed jutsu that could do her any good. There was nothing they could do...

Ino felt a hand on hers and glanced down, startled. Sakura had taken her hand and was already moving it. Instantly Ino realized what she was doing and grinned just slightly. Sakura moved to the next hand seal, and Ino channeled her chakra into the jutsu. The Samurai's blade was nearly touching them, but it didn't matter.

Chakra exploded across the roof. It hit the attacking warrior head on, sending him flying backward. He and his blade smashed into the wall of a nearby building and no longer moved. Violent winds following the jutsu swept the rooftop clear of all but Sakura and Ino, fallen in two heaps. They did not move for a long time.

"Stupid samurai shouldn't have caused us so much trouble," Sakura muttered eventually.

"Caused _us_ trouble? I could have beaten him myself if you hadn't gotten in the way!"

"I'm not the one without use of an arm!"

"Hey, I'm the- quit holding my hand!"

"Ewww! Get away from me!"

"Shut up!"


	20. So It Is

Another chapter, with slight plot advancement, an expected development that will please many of you, and another character appearance. Also, for the first time since the system change, a story note for all of you to read following the chapter.

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Chapter Twenty: So It Is

Slowly and painfully Matthew opened his eyes. The light about him seemed extraordinarily bright, though he knew it was merely his eyes being unaccustomed to ordinary sunlight. So he had actually survived; he had not been at all certain that he would. He wasn't sure if he had wanted to or not.

Regardless, it was too late now. He closed his eyes again and began searching within himself. His body had taken severe wounds. Far worse than he'd first thought, actually. In the heat of battle, especially trying to kill his mother, he had barely noticed the injuries he had received. Chakra began pulsing through his body, stitching it back together. For now, it would do. With a slight groan Matthew raised himself slightly from the ground so he could observe where he was.

"Well, I'm glad to see you up again," a voice commented. It was one of the shinobi, Sakura. Not bothering to try to sit up, Matthew glanced about himself. All four of them had survived the attacks. Sakura was standing over him, severely bandaged; a short distance behind her Ino had her upper arm heavily wrapped and was dressing a wound; there was a small fire that Sasuke and Hinata were sitting silently on opposite sides of, both looking worn and damaged but mostly alright.

"I'm glad I'm awake too," Matthew decided to say. Why bother revealing more information than was absolutely necessary? But at that moment Sasuke stood up and glanced at him. His hair and cloak were in their usual positions, which meant his eyes were only barely visible, but at that moment Matthew knew that he had found out somehow. Then it was time to come clean about everything.

Moving was painful, but he forced himself to get to his feet. For the first time he took a look around them and realized they were in the middle of a thick forest of giant mushrooms. Most likely a far more safe location than the city. Evidently he had been unconscious for some time, because a great deal of his chakra had returned.

"It looks like you guys need some serious healing," Matthew commented, glancing over them. Sasuke made an unreadable movement of his head.

"I have recovered, now. Hinata-san will be fine. Check Ino-san's shoulder and Sakura-san in general."

"I'm just fine!" Sakura insisted.

Nodding, Matthew moved to Ino, grateful that it was not yet time. He didn't relish having to finally answer all of Sasuke's questions.

"Hold still," he told Ino. She nodded, but the instant he touched the bandage around her shoulder she winced and pulled away. He raised an eyebrow.

"The inner layers are soaked with blood," she explained. "The skin is really raw there, so I don't want to take it off."

"I need to get a look at the wound to heal it."

"For crying out loud, I got a katana jabbed all the way through my arm! Give me a break!"

Gently Matthew touched her shoulder, fingers glowing and humming just softly. Light began to flow from his hand and through her shoulder, and Ino closed her eyes with a shiver. The feeling was unearthly, but didn't feel bad at all, really.

Abruptly Matthew gripped her shoulder and ripped the bandage away in one violent motion. Ino gave a pained and most unladylike yelp, followed by several most unladylike words. When she had calmed down, however, she realized that her upper arm was whole once again. Her sleeve and the bandage, still with blood and flesh on it, had been ripped away, but beneath it was unbroken skin.

"Go easy on it," Matthew told her. "You'll break open a new wound if you put it under serious stress and it won't be able to handle any chakra flow for a while."

"That's... really impressive," Sakura said after a short pause. "Where did you learn how to do that?" From the corner of his eye Matthew saw Sasuke's eyes shift slightly. Glancing at him purposefully, Matthew turned back to Sakura and answered her question.

"I'd already been taught about the stuff you guys call chakra, though with a bunch of different names. It wasn't too difficult to play around with it and figure out how to use it in new ways. Given that I _am_ a doctor, it was a fairly simple matter to come up with supernatural ways to heal the human body."

"Think you could patch me up, too?" Sakura asked. "I'm alright, but going around with bandages isn't my idea of a good time."

"If you like." Putting his hands on her shoulders, Matthew closed his eyes and concentrated. His chakra slowly drifted down her body, finding the places that needed mending. It was a bit worse than it looked; she had strained and torn several ligaments, and numerous places were very worn down. Setting his jaw, Matthew set about his work.

When he opened his eyes and pulled away he found Sakura looking at him strangely. He responded with a raised eyebrow and then stepped away. It had been his intention to sit down beside the fire, but Sasuke rose before he could do so.

"We have some things to talk about," he said darkly. Sighing, Matthew nodded slowly and then followed him when he moved to the other side of one of the large mushrooms. As he went, Matthew noticed Hinata looking after Sasuke with a strange expression. Something had definitely happened, and at the moment it left her scared and feeling alone. Unusual; he'd have to figure it out later.

"I told you you'd tell me everything when it became necessary," Sasuke said curtly when they were some distance away. "Now it is necessary."

"Yes," Matthew sighed heavily, "I know." He leaned back against the stalk of the nearest gigantic mushroom. Strangely springy surface; he hadn't imagined it like that. "I'll admit I haven't been completely honest with you, but you know that. What I didn't tell you wasn't truly important to your mission, or I would have informed you."

"Whatever it is just became important to the mission."

"Again, I know. I suppose I should start at the beginning." For a moment Matthew paused, his eyes closed, then he glanced up and began speaking. "My father, despite being foreign-born, was the leader of a major faction of Fire Country some time ago. He eventually exceeded his term in office and left. At this point he had not met my mother.

"The next part is blank in my story, as I cannot tell you what happened to him. In any case, ten years later, he was a very bitter man with a dream of destroying every single shinobi on the face of the planet. He met my mother, who was a geneticist with similar ambitions.

"Still before I was born, they began gathering an army through dozens of puppet and front organizations. Again, I don't know a lot about this part. My story begins when they began trying to essentially breed warriors to fight for them. They tested with themselves, and created me. One thing they always used to repeat to me was that I had been born in a test tube.

"In all honesty, I was a failure. Genetically I am only average. Still, they put me through every training program they had access to. I've never learned any skills like you shinobi have, but I was trained in many other arts, including the samurai system of 'mosou' which is essentially your chakra. Other than my medical studies, which I did solely in my free time, I was taught only to kill. No healing techniques, no evasion, no illusion, not even any blocking. Just killing."

Sasuke remained silent and let him speak. He was telling his story easily, flowing from point to point without pause. However it was told, it would eventually answer all of his questions.

"A few years before they began to carry out their grand plan, I managed to escape them entirely. For a while I was drifting free, and I managed to get a degree in medicine at a university. But once they began activating all of their allies throughout the world, they came for me. Being a recent graduate, I was too high profile to go unnoticed.

"That is why I made myself vanish again, instead finding a small town in which to try and help people. Their forces had greatly improved since the last time, however, and they began following my tracks. At the time you arrived, there were already quite a few assassins scouring the town for me. The thing was, though they knew what I looked like, they did not really know I was a doctor, nor how I had aged. Plus, the people there are not very open with outsiders. In essence, your arrival just made the inevitable come more quickly.

"From that point, my story is essentially your own. Once we arrived here, it was only a matter of time before they tried to neutralize us. I anticipated this, and used the positions of the attackers and my prior experience to determine where they had been sent from. Given the chance, I attacked there, and discovered that my mother was still in residence in the city. I killed her... I don't suppose you can understand that."

"I understand." Matthew blinked once, as if analyzing Sasuke's response, then nodded.

"I believe you may be right. In any case, from the nature of this attack, I imagine that the final phase of their plan will come soon. Within days, perhaps."

"What is the final phase?" Sasuke asked, folding his arms within his cloak.

"I can't be certain." Matthew gazed at the ground for a moment, pondering. "They never really gave me information that could be used against them. However, unless they've changed quite a bit in the years I was gone, I think I know what they'll do. Their warriors are probably planted all over the world, ready to strike. Most likely, they will move in tandem for a massive assault.

"From their movements elsewhere, this city seems to be the axis of their plan. However, I would imagine that Father intends to strike from here down toward Fire Country. Furthermore, he might come here to oversee the operation himself. Even if we kill him, however, the plan will not be stopped. All of the forces have their own motivations, and will act on their own."

"So we're moving toward world war."

"That is an adequate summary, yes. Regardless of who wins, Father intends to destroy the political and economic structures that support shinobi of any kind."

"I doubt he will be able to accomplish that." Sasuke closed his eyes. "There are too many shinobi, and they are too entrenched in this world. I am more worried about our own situation. Sakura-san and Ino-san will both be out of commission for a battle. Hinata-san will take some time to recover. I will not be operating at full efficiency for at least a few days. If there are many forces here, things look rather grim."

"Then do you propose running?" Matthew asked.

"We can't run, not now. At the very least we can stop the army building here from attacking Konoha. That will eliminate one leg of their plan, which might topple all of it. If we are sacrificed, it will not be in vain."

"Very well." Matthew nodded grimly. He moved from the large mushroom, then suddenly staggered. For a moment he gagged, then spat blood from his mouth. Sasuke caught his shoulder before he could collapse entirely. Briefly his eyes glowed red as Sharingan spun within them.

"What have you done with your chakra?" Sasuke questioned Matthew, who was breathing raspily. "Your body's flow is twisted and unnatural."

"Temporary healing," Matthew choked. "I nearly died... I can't heal that much in a short time. It will take more than a few days for me to truly recover."

Sighing, Sasuke guided Matthew back to the camp. Then yet another one of their fighters was out of commission. Unfortunate, but to be expected, given what Sasuke estimated he had done. Matthew would not have so seriously underestimated his wounds... which meant he had considered it worthwhile to explain everything, despite what it cost him. Interesting.

Soon the doctor was resting as well, lying back with his eyes closed but his glasses still on. Sakura and Ino had fallen asleep on opposite sides of what had once been their fire; Hinata was nowhere to be seen. Settling down, Sasuke spent a long time staring at the sky. It was still morning, though it did not feel like such.

Everything had been chaotic following the battle. He'd immediately searched for Sakura and Ino and found them hanging on to consciousness atop a mostly decimated roof. Hinata had managed to scry Matthew's location and retrieved him. Completely exhausted, both of them had fallen asleep without saying anything to each other. They hadn't really spoken since that incident, actually. In their secure camp location he'd slept for some time, and had consequently been up that entire night.

But now it was morning. Regardless of the chaos about them, the sun was blazing cheerfully in the early sky, announcing a new day. The fungi-covered forest they were in felt a bit musty, but occasionally fresh air was blown in to them. A draft of it blew past Sasuke, and suddenly, it felt much more like morning. Smiling just slightly, he got to his feet.

It wasn't often that he got to walk alone. There were very few ways that Sasuke allowed himself to relax, and one of the few was walking. But walking alone. That became more and more difficult to accomplish as the years passed and more people began attempting to find him in just such a situation.

Now, at least, he had a chance. It was highly unlikely that he would be interrupted by any of his allies, and their enemies did not seem inclined to attack for the moment. If Matthew was correct, they would not attack at all for some time.

To one end of the forest of mushrooms there was a different type of forest, he found, and it was a nice place. It wasn't at all like the forests of home, but it was still beautiful in its own way. The trees were swaying just slightly in the wind, their strange green spikes waving together in meaningless patterns. Other than the soft sound of his footsteps, there were only a few scattered sounds from woodland animals.

He stopped in mid step, realizing there was someone behind him. Turning slowly, he glanced at Hinata, who was in the path where he had been some distance back. Up until that point, he truly hadn't noticed her. Impressive stealth. At the moment she was standing there looking nervous with her hands together before her.

"Good morning, Hinata," he greeted her quietly, his eyes softening. Immediately her nervous expression dissolved into a slight smile.

"I... I was kind of afraid it had been a dream," Hinata told him softly. "Everything that happened during the battle seems so strange, so unreal."

"It certainly wasn't a dream," Sasuke returned, beginning to step toward her. "I remember it very well." Hinata was walking as well, and they met midway between them, just a short distance apart, watching each other.

"Is it really true that you don't mind?" Hinata asked, large white eyes hanging on his answer. Sasuke let his expression relax just slightly, though he did not smile.

"I more than don't mind," he told her. "I feel the same way, Hinata. It just never felt like it was the right time to say anything about it. You seemed so truly happy to have found a friend that I didn't want to make things any more complicated. It seems that it takes extreme violence to make people talk to one another."

"I hadn't thought about it that way. That's kind of funny." Hinata smiled a bit broader. "Thank you, Sasuke. But why me? I'm not as pretty as Ino-chan is, I'm not as smart as Sakura-chan... you've refused so many people, what makes me any different? How can you-"

Sasuke embraced her gently but reprovingly. Hinata rested her head against his chest, letting her doubts slip away. How could she have still not gained confidence in herself, she wondered. Perhaps one day she would gain it... but until then, Sasuke would always be there for her. Glancing down at her, Sasuke smiled just slightly behind his cloak. When they parted he opened the front of his cloak enough that his face was visible, and relaxed visibly as he did so.

"No one has a right to insult you, and that includes you," he told her. "Regardless of what you say, you are very beautiful."

"I'm sorry for being silly. It's kind of surprising that you think that; I didn't think anyone would like me, with solid white eyes..."

"I like your eyes. They look nice." Sasuke said it so easily that Hinata found she took it like more of a fact than an opinion. Maybe that had been his intention. Neither one of them spoke for a long moment, but the silence wasn't uncomfortable. It was a beautiful morning; Hinata breathed in the strange smell of the forest deeply. The air was crisper out here; it felt much better than the mushroom-filled forest.

"What are we going to do when everybody else finds out about... us?" Hinata asked. Sasuke shrugged.

"They'll deal with it, one way or another. But for the moment, and for your sake, I don't think that anyone needs to know. Not yet, anyway. As much as I'd like to make most people stop bothering me, I really doubt knowing would make much of a difference. For now, it will be enough to have you with me."

"Alright. That sounds like a good idea. But don't you think that Ino-chan and Sakura-chan will be able to tell?"

Sasuke laughed softly. "Them? We do not need to fear that they will ever recognize love for what it is... or at least not for the moment. I doubt they'll make a distinction between our friendship then and our friendship now. Needless to say, we won't have a great deal of time together until this is all over."

"What about afterward?" Hinata wondered, glancing into the grey sky. "Won't we be immediately split up on missions again?"

"There are some A Ranked missions that require more than one person," Sasuke explained. "Not many, but they can be found. I think that the Hokage can be persuaded to be helpful. Besides... I haven't used any of my vacation time for at least a decade."

"I think I would like that. But for now, we should be focusing on finishing this entire war, shouldn't we?"

"Yes." Sasuke's eyes narrowed as he pondered a nearby tree and the situation. "That is the immediate concern." Both of them continued walking in the same direction that Sasuke had been going earlier, side by side, not really looking at each other. Their steps fell at the same moments, so the forest was as silent as it had been before. For a moment Sasuke pondered that with some people, it was almost the same as walking alone. Certainly not any worse.

"Um..." Hinata spoke up, causing Sasuke to glance slightly at her. "Don't most people who are in love usually kiss?"

"Most of them," Sasuke answered amiably, "I wasn't going to do anything that would make you feel uncomfortable." He was looking away, his cloak and hair shadowing his eyes entirely.

"I... I think I would like to, if you don't mind." The slightest of smiles appeared on Sasuke's face. He turned in one smooth motion, parting his cloak and taking her in his arms gently but swiftly.

As it turned out, Hinata discovered it wasn't uncomfortable at all.

* * *

Ino and Sakura sneezed violently at the same time and then glared at one another, as if in some sort of competition. Before either of them could say anything they seemed to pause, then glanced away as if embarrassed. It was probably due to general exhaustion. That was to be expected, Matthew reflected; most people were unconscious for some time after being cured of such heavy wounds. Being shinobi, they were apparently tougher. Still, he wasn't willing to assume that was the cause quite yet. 

There was very little for him to do at this point but recover. He had told Sasuke everything he knew, and ended the life of one of the people that had caused his. Father would be in the city, but it would not be possible to kill him. After that incident, he would be far more heavily guarded.

Still... it was all going to be over soon. For good or for ill, the plan was going to come to completion, and go head to head with the world of shinobi. Obviously, Father didn't intend to try and match them strength for strength; that would be sheer idiocy. That meant he could only be counting on some other factor to give him victory.

Then again, victory was probably not his objective. Father would probably be content with the shinobi losing, even if he destroyed himself. Abruptly Matthew realized that he never thought of his biological parents as anything other than Mother and Father. They had insisted he call them nothing but that, and their real names had rarely been used. Oh, he knew them, certainly; the data was stored inside his mind from the one or two times they had been mentioned in his presence, but there was no association between those collections of sounds and his parents.

All this time Matthew had been aimlessly staring into the large mushrooms. He was distracted when Sakura walked across his field of vision to sit beside Ino. After the split second she obscured his line of vision, Matthew discovered a man crouching atop one of the mushrooms and blinked.

He did not loudly broadcast his presence. Ino and Sakura had still not noticed him. Whoever he was, he was calmly crouched there, watching them. Most of his body was covered in a long grey coat; an obsidian pair of sunglasses made his eyes invisible; his black hair was tied behind him.

The man remained there, completely silent, merely watching. Matthew found no urge to say anything and merely watched in return. Sakura and Ino were fairly involved with their conversation, and paid no attention to either of them.

Some large insect flew into their clearing, buzzing loudly. It began dive bombing the women's heads, eventually making them both too annoyed to keep arguing. Just as Sakura was about to hurl a shuriken at it, it promptly flitted away into the forest, just over the shoulder of the man. Sakura and Ino both froze.

"Shino-san?" Sakura asked, slightly amazed.

"What are you doing here?" Ino asked in the same moment. Matthew relaxed and let the scalpel in his hand slip back into the holder on his sleeve. Evidently this was a friend.

In response the man dropped from the mushroom, landing easily and walking over to them. Matthew realized that he was tall when he stepped beside Sakura and Ino. He had the look of a Leaf shinobi; he was probably a colleague of theirs from missions past. Certainly not the type to run on as much as they did, and not the type Matthew wanted to meet in a dark alley.

"This is for you." His hand slipped into a pocket and emerged with a scroll. "Show it to Sasuke-san and Hinata-san." Immediately Sakura snatched at it, opening the scroll and reading it before Ino could.

"Gah!" Sakura muttered. "Still can't read Naruto-san's handwriting." After puzzling over the message a moment she glanced up at Shino with a raised eyebrow. "Really? How many? Who?"

All Shino did was shake his head slightly. Sakura rolled her eyes and threw up her hands; Ino took the opportunity to grab the scroll from her and read it over herself. Matthew considered getting up to read it as well, but Ino was reading partially aloud so it didn't appear to be necessary.

"...compensating... worldwide conflict... gathering… talked to Gaara-kun - Naruto-san is the only person who would _ever_ call him that - ...cut off army before it reaches Konoha... blah, blah, blah. What I get out of this is that all of the bad guy's forces from the entire world are going to be converging here soon, and that there will be some people from Leaf sent to assist." She glanced up. "You had the right question, Sakura-chan. Who's getting sent to help us?"

"You'll find out at dawn," Shino answered simply. Briefly his head shifted to glance down at Matthew, but he only glanced at him for a moment and then turned away.

"That's it?" Sakura asked. "Aren't you here to help us?"

"That is for others. I must yet work," his voice returned softly. Without pausing, he moved in between the stalks of the large mushrooms and quickly vanished into the shadows of the forest.

"Still as creepy as ever," Ino muttered. Sakura merely nodded, then sat down to think. Ino soon sat down as well. Matthew glanced at both of them, waited for a long moment, then merely shrugged. In his life, stranger things had happened.

* * *

Regarding Ino and Sakura: As much as I want to make a Greek poetry joke, I shall restrain myself and merely state that their relationship should not be misinterpreted as anything other than platonic.  



	21. Hurricane Wall

The twenty first chapter... Shino hasn't completely finished his role, either. You'll also note two more character appearances which some of you may enjoy. Assorted notes follow the chapter.

* * *

Chapter 21: Hurricane Wall 

Sasuke lightly ran his hand through Hinata's hair, watching it fall away from his hand over her shoulder. Unfortunately, it was finally time for them to move on; they should return to the camp soon in any case. They parted with a final caress, returning to the course they had been moving on before their long respite.

Abruptly both of them noticed Shino before them, standing in between two trees. He was not moving, his clothing was still, there was no chakra surrounding him, he simply was there: his hands in the pockets of his long coat, the high collar of it obscuring his face and his sunglasses obscuring his eyes. There was nothing to indicate how long he had been watching them, if at all.

"Hello, Shino-kun," Hinata greeted him. He nodded briefly to them both.

"Hinata-san. Sasuke-sama." After moving beside them, Shino glanced away, eyes fixed on something far on the horizon. "I have already spoken with Ino-san and Sakura-san; they have the scroll."

"I trust you didn't come here to chat," Sasuke said dryly, watching Shino. He did not waste words, which was an understatement, so there was definitely a specific reason he had come to them.

"No." Shino readjusted his glasses. "Not only is the enemy army coming, they are pursued by shinobi of every nation."

"Then the Hokage wishes us to remain here," Sasuke surmised, "at what will be the heart of the conflict." He received the slightest of nods. "I take it that this has not been discussed with the other Kages, and that there is a great element of uncertainty?"

"Negotiations are underway," Shino told them. "But the status of the other shinobi in regard to you is still unknown. Exercise caution and avoid any conflicts if possible."

"Will you be here, Shino-kun?" Hinata brought herself to say. Somehow, she would feel a great deal more safe if he were there in the battle.

"There will be two others," Shino shook his head. "My mission is incomplete."

"Other messages, right?" Sasuke guessed. "There are critical positions such as ours, and Naruto-san wanted to ensure that no communications were blocked." Shino nodded his assent silently, then turned to walk past them and into the thick green forest. No goodbyes were necessary, and so there was complete silence. Just as Shino passed Sasuke, however, he turned his head just slightly and said in a barely audible voice:

"Take care of her." Then he was gone.

For a long moment Sasuke and Hinata remained where they were, pondering the nature of the message and what it meant for them. In the sky above, the sun continued to move, inching toward nightfall and the inevitable attack. With a slight glance at one another, they began to walk forward.

* * *

"Is that guy really our target?" 

The leader grunted, nodded curtly, his eyes never shifting. Like the rest of them, he was looking below from their hidden vantage point in a large tree. Fire Country was filled with them, so unlike his home, which made spying was remarkably easy. Of course, they had to be cautious, so close to Konoha.

"He doesn't really strike me as dangerous," another one of the assassins commented, dropping down to sit on the same branch. "I don't think this will be difficult in the slightest."

Far beneath them the shopkeeper continued to work silently, wiping off the long counter by the front of his ship. He moved lazily and slowly, as if he was in no hurry to get anywhere in his life. Though clearly that of a restaurant owner, his loose clothing was vaguely reminiscent of shinobi armor, and his hands were still clad in tight black gloves with metal plating. Obviously a warrior of the past.

When one looked at him he didn't immediately seem old, but after watching him for a moment you realized that he was far older than he appeared. Still, he seemed to have aged remarkably well, as most shinobi did. He still had all of his hair, which appeared to be a naturally silver color. It had been grown out a fair amount, vaguely spiky locks falling over one of his eyes and onto his shoulders.

"Can that really be Copy Cat Kakashi?" one of the assassins muttered, shaking his head.

"All shinobi grow old," the leader spoke up for the first time. "Death is an opponent that no man can defeat. Some have tried and for a time escaped death, but all have failed."

"Aw, man, it's not going to be any fun beating up an old guy. Can't we target somebody else, like the Hokage? They have better uses for this much talent than cleaning up after yesterday's trash."

"Don't be a fool," the leader snapped. "Any shinobi as powerful as he was has to be taken seriously. Even old, he still has all his spiritually generated chakra, and thousands upon thousands of jutsu. They assigned this many assassins to him so we could end the battle quickly, before he can get started. Once in battle, I imagine he'll quickly remember all his old skills, even if they've been in temporary disuse."

"He has a point," another of the assassins agreed. "All of us have been noted for killing quickly, not lengthy fights. If sources are to be believed, he'll wear out his supply of chakra pretty quickly due to his copying skill. This battle will probably be brief and brutal."

"Let's make sure the brutality is done only to him." Drawing his cloak around him, the leader leapt from his branch. He landed lightly on the street beside the ramen shop, and the other shinobi followed immediately. There were eight of them in all, and they moved in ranks toward the shop.

By this point Kakashi had finished cleaning. He was sitting back in a chair behind the counter, balancing on the back two feet. In his hand was a book that he seemed to be pouring over with considerable interest. They approached him silently, but making no effort to hide their presence. Eventually all eight of them stood before the former shinobi.

Nothing happened. Kakashi continued to sit in his chair, reading his book. There was an uncomfortable pause, then Kakashi flipped a page, snickering softly to himself.

"Ahem." The leader frowned, annoyed at the subordinate who had made noise. He didn't like being mocked, and he was completely certain that Kakashi had sensed their presence.

"Oh, hey, didn't see you," Kakashi spoke up amiably, waving a hand vaguely in their direction. "What kind of ramen do you guys want? Can't say I get many customers around this time, though the Hokage drops by occasionally. Have I ever told you I was the one that trained him? That was back in the-"

"We're here to kill you!" one of the assassins roared.

"_Ja_, _ja_, it happens." Kakashi glanced up at them, gaze not really focused. "I'm in the middle of a really good part now, though, couldn't it wait? If I'm going to die, I'd at least like to die having read Jaiyra's last and, in my humble personal opinion, best work. Have any of you read it, by chance? Don't tell me how it ends."

"Most of the time, people don't get to decide how they die," one of the assassins commented with a snicker. "Are you ready for the next world, old man?"

There was a pause, then Kakashi shut his book with a soft clap. He sighed heavily, then glanced up at them. In his one visible eye there was something that seemed almost wistful, an emotion that couldn't easily defined.

"Eight of you against one man? Is it fair to gang up on someone like that? Is it necessary to kill every shinobi alive even if they were never a threat to you? Is it just to attack an old man who only wants to finish the rest of his life in peace?"

His speech gave pause to the group, none of whom moved for weapons as they had been intending to do moments before. Abruptly the leader laughed harshly, shattering the effect. A mocking smile appeared on his face, and he spread his arms to either side of him in a grand gesture.

"Fair? Who said anything about fair? Who said anything about necessity? Who said anything about justice? Above all, who said anything about peace?" His eyes hardened. "The fact is, Kakashi, that you are going to die, and you're going to die right now. Even though you're a retired, decrepit shinobi, you still have to die." He snapped his fingers. "Kill him."

The nearest assassin struck like lightning, a long kunai flashing to pierce Kakashi's forehead and end the battle instantly. A split second before the blow struck, Kakashi _moved_. His hand holding the book swept up, and the kunai embedded itself in its pages; his other arm smashed into the assassin's elbow, making a snapping sound; leaping out of his chair he kicked the attacker in the chin, sending him sailing backward.

As the would-be killer crashed to the ground, Kakashi straightened and put his hands in his pockets calmly. "Who said anything about retired?"

"Get him!" the leader roared, already a moment too late. Kakashi appeared behind them, legs flashing in swift kicks that were only barely avoided by the assassins. He landed before they could turn and was already striking again. One of the enemy shinobi was struck and sent hurtling over the nearby trees.

A massive warrior struck at Kakashi the next instant, an oversized kunai in each hand, aiming to skewer Kakashi's head from both directions. The older shinobi easily caught both the man's wrists, stopping his momentum completely. Roaring, the behemoth assassin stomped forward, trying to overpower his opponent. Kakashi did not move, but the force of the attack whipped at his clothing and made his hair fly away from his face...

Moments later Kakashi let go of the man's wrists, and the assassin collapsed to the ground where he did not move in the slightest. The remaining assassins were staring in shock, focused on the silvery hair eclipsing one of his eyes.

"Who said anything about decrepit?" Kakashi asked amiably. Before any of them could answer he thrust one hand to the ground. Chakra exploded around him, arcing in a tight circle and collecting near his hand. While the assassins could only watch, Kakashi braced his hand with his other arm and continued to collect chakra, blue flames leaping around his palm.

He completed the Chidori then stood there watching the assassins, his expression unfathomable. There was a long moment during which no one spoke, and then the long blade moved to impale Kakashi through the chest from behind.

Whirling, Kakashi pushed the surprise attack aside and drove the Chidori through his opponent's body. The remaining assassins winced from the violent explosion, the leader only slightly shielding his eyes. Kakashi pulled his hand out and then moved to face them. Only half the assassins remained, and they were shaking where they stood. Narrowing his eyes, the leader paused a moment, then sneered.

"Impressive, Kakashi-yarou," he said, clapping patronizingly. "But we all know that technique puts quite a drain on your chakra. Even in your prime, you couldn't do that technique more than six times a day." Gesturing to the nearest two assassins, he snapped his fingers. "Pincer attack, now!"

Nodding, the shinobi exploded in opposite directions, touched off nearby walls and hurtled toward Kakashi from opposite directions at the same instant, weapons flying into play. There was a crash and an explosion of chakra... and both men fell backward off Kakashi's hands, collapsing on the street with holes in their chests. Both of Kakashi's hands were cloaked in blue flame that did not dissipate. There was a pause as a slight breeze swept over the street-turned-battlefield, then Kakashi calmly looked up at the leader of the assassins.

"Six?" he asked. "Who said anything about six?"

* * *

Slowly but surely Iruka moved down the street, leaning heavily on a wooden cane. It was a gnarled old stick and a bit too short for him, but he loved the thing. There was just something that made it seem so much better than your typical metal walker or anything of the kind. Not that shinobi should need walkers, but still... 

It was a beautiful day, and he took a moment to glance up into the sky. Fire Country around this time of the year was really beautiful; more beautiful than any other part of the world, he thought. The cold froze his bones just a bit and made his arthritis act up, but it wasn't a problem.

Ideally, he wanted to just walk downtown in peace, but that usually never happened. There was almost always some annoying little kid who wanted to hear a story, or some hawking merchant, or a politician getting an early start on the campaign. Or five assassins leaping through the trees after him. Like the one now leaping at his back.

Abruptly Iruka jerked his back straight, one hand blurring as it swept behind him. His cane practically rocketed from his fingers, slicing through the air and through the shinobi leaping at him. The cane drove the assassin backward and pinned him to the side of a nearby stone wall.

Turning slowly, Iruka raised his hands to either side of him and stood on one leg. "So... who wants some of this?"

He'd always wanted to say that.

* * *

The battle was short and brief. All the assassins were young, weak and used nothing but textbook maneuvers straight out of the academy. If anyone knew academy procedures, it was Iruka. Finding his cane and ripping it out of the stone wall with some difficulty, Iruka continued down the street. Blasted ninja fights made his arthritis act up something fierce. 

Soon he approached the small shop that had been his destination. Huh, part of the awning was ripped and a bit stained... not too unusual. Hobbling inside, Iruka discovered Kakashi sitting on the counter, making a feeble effort to read a book with a gigantic slash in the middle. It looked as though he had been in the middle of something but gotten distracted.

"Hey Iruka," Kakashi said, waving without looking. "I can get you something to eat right after I finish whatever I'm in the middle of doing... which was... wait, what was I doing?"

"Cleaning up the bodies strewn over your shop, maybe?"

"Yeah, that's it." Kakashi hopped off the counter and slipped the book inside his jacket easily. "What'll it be today?"

"Oh, the usual."

"Sure, sure," Kakashi shifted back to the other side of the bar. "You got money?"

"Come on, Kakashi-kun," Iruka rolled his eyes. "I always have money. You ask me that every day."

"Hey, don't knock it," Kakashi answered. "Can't ignore important matters like money. What do you think I am, a shinobi or something?"

* * *

Strange shadows were cast over the mostly dead city, making everything seem eerie and unreal. The sun was at the edge of the sky, glowing hot orange in the lower end of the atmosphere. A romantic mind might have considered it like a flaming sphere ready to crash into the earth and render judgment upon its inhabitants. 

Shino was not such a mind. He remained silhouetted against the sun, steadily at the top of a building. His expression was completely inexpressive, his thoughts a mystery. The men following him continued to watch from the trees, waiting for the proper moment. Without looking, Shino raised a hand, allowing something too small to be seen from such a distance to land upon it. For a moment he paused, then he nodded and began moving away from the sun across the rooftop.

"Hold it right there!" the leader of the assassins called out, appearing from the shadows at the edge of the roof. The other three assassins came as well, all gathering behind Shino, who did not turn or acknowledge their presence in any way other than stopping. "The Kazekage isn't going to be getting any messages tonight!" There was a long pause. "Well?" the leader demanded. "Aren't you going to say anything?"

"No."

Growling, the leader leapt across the roof, green flames exploding around both of his hands like a torpedo. In midair, streaking toward the back of the Leaf shinobi, he put his hands together. The wind suddenly howled, and he shot forward with even greater speed, his hands bursting all the way through Shino's chest

Instantly he seemed to crumble, appearing as a swarming mass of bugs that held his shape for an instant before flooding over the shinobi. The attacker gave a loud cry, but the sound abruptly cut off as he crashed to the ground in a shower of bugs. They swiftly skittered away into small cracks, soon leaving only the body.

"Destruction Bugs," one of the assassins cursed. "Fully matured ones, too. Don't let them touch you, they eat chakra like mad."

A thin beam of chakra exploded from the roof beneath them, startling but not striking all three shinobi. It faded almost instantly, leaving only a rough hole in the roof. Before any of the assassins could comment, however, hundreds of small bodies shot out of the hole. Acting together, like a gigantic whip, the bugs curled around the nearest assassin.

Gaping, the other two leapt away from the roof, leaving their comrade to his fate and narrowly avoiding two more sets of bugs that snaked across the space where they had just been. Falling back, the assassin allowed himself to smirk just slightly. This guy was tough, but it was fairly obvious which of his tools he relied upon most. Using bugs was a pretty good strategy, but not when your opponent could sense even their tiny chakras like he could. None of them were on ground level, so he'd probably have time to use a flame jutsu. With an easy flip, the shinobi landed on his feet just beside the building.

When he glanced up, Shino was standing before him. Before he could even begin to move, his target lashed out, the side of his fist crashing into the wall beside him. The side of the building exploded in an avalanche that quickly engulfed the assassin.

Only one remained, nervously holding his ground on one end of the street. He had already drawn his blade and held it at ready, fingers shaking slightly with anticipation. For him this was no random mission, it was the one he had been waiting for his entire life. At last it was time to kill this human who had made a hellish pact with monsters. It was finally time, and he was going to purify the world of this abomination.

He saw Shino calmly leap away from the building avalanche and struck at the moment. Racing across the street, he swung his blade in a lethal arc, aiming to slice down and through his opponent's neck. Shino landed before he could attack, but held his ground, merely raising a hand at the level of the sword. _The fool! What does he think he's going to do, catch the blade?_ Electricity abruptly leapt around the assassin's weapon, burning with dangerous chakra. His opponent saw, but it was too late... too late...

Something exploded from Shino's palm, connecting with the blade swinging at his head. The assassin was shocked, barely able to draw his blade back in time to avoid a dangerous slash. Shino returned his hand to one side of him, and the other shinobi finally got a good look at his weapon.

One long object was currently breaking out of Shino's palm. It was slightly curved and one edge of it looked sharp, making it seem like... like... a mandible? The assassin's eyes widened, but Shino was already attacking again. With a backhanding movement Shino knocked his opponent's blade aside, then he sliced in the opposite direction.

The last of the warriors collapsed to the ground. Wordlessly Shino straightened his arm, and the mandible retracted itself, fleshing sealing over Shino's palm when it was gone. With a slight adjustment of his glasses, Shino turned and vanished into the night.

* * *

I cannot respond directly to those of you who review anonymously, but I appreciate your time. On that note, could LadyPearlDragon give me contact information? While I would like to discuss your legitimate critique, this is no longer the place to do so. Aside, your age guess is too high. 

Chapter 20 received the most reviews I have ever gotten for one chapter, if memory serves me correctly. They are appreciated. The next chapter should be on time; we're nearing the end.


	22. And so it Begins

A happy new year to all of you. As of this chapter, Era has officially been posted for over a year. Considering this is the 22nd chapter, that means I actually didn't miss too many updates. This story should continue into the new year for a while, but we are reaching the end, which is ironic, given this chapter's title.

* * *

Chapter 22: And so it Begins… 

The sun had already set, leaving Sasuke barely visible atop the building. He didn't move, merely staring into the endless void of stars. Dawn was hours away, yet. There was the possibility that the primary army would not gather until reinforcements arrived, but he highly doubted it. Soon the city would be overrun by opponents out for blood.

Much of this city would be destroyed, he knew. Though the city seemed unnaturally closed and uncommunicative, news of the explosive battles his team had fought in it had quickly spread. For the past day many people had been evacuating the city, which was fortunate given what it was about to go through. Still, all of them wouldn't make it before the battle started, and there would probably be many civilian deaths in addition to the immense property damage. It was unavoidable, but not any more pleasant for it.

His mind remained for a moment upon the winged warrior he had fought earlier. Probably the most powerful warrior who had tried to kill him in a very long time. He had been working for the enemy, and yet he had retained a certain degree of inner nobility. It was that which captured Sasuke's interest.

If one warrior involved in the overall plot was willing to give it up, how many more likewise would be? Could this battle actually be on a moral plane as well as a physical one? That would certainly make everything messier, and he preferred not to think about it. His hand tightened against itself dangerously. Afterward, of course, he would be forced to deal with such things.

Afterward, however, he would have better things to do. Hinata flitted through Sasuke's mind, nearly bringing a smile to his face. Before any of that, however, there was the upcoming battle. Already in the distance he could feel a solid wave of chakra approaching... and a group of decently-sized chakras heading directly toward his back.

Calmly Sasuke turned toward the group of samurai that were leaping over buildings toward him. Most of them he wrote off as generic warriors of no particular threat; though all of them wore similar robes and carried katanas, some had stronger chakras. In the center of the group was a much older man, bald except for a ring of shaggy grey hair, that struck Sasuke as the leader. Before the group reached him it slowed to a halt.

The leader raised a hand, and instantly all of the other samurai made a slight bow. They formed a line and the older man moved toward Sasuke, wiry arms folded behind his back. No words had yet been spoken, and Sasuke saw no reason to speak any. Hopefully it would begin soon... he was in the mood for a fight.

"Are you Sasuke-sama of the Hidden Leaf?" the elderly man asked. Sasuke gave him a scarce nod. Immediately the man smiled and brought out a box from behind his back. One of Sasuke's eyebrows rose; _it doesn't seem to be dangerous in any way._ "This I bring to you as a gift from all the samurai I control."

"Haven't those samurai generally tried to kill me in the past?" Sasuke asked, noting that the row of samurai behind the old man looked surprised.

"Before we had been working for a different employer; that is behind us now." the samurai explained. "But please, allow me to introduce myself in some small way. I am the Samurai Kage, who has trained all lesser samurai. If you decide to make peace, I will tell you my name as a friend."

"You wish to make peace?"

"Yes. Our employer has proved to be dishonorable, and I have severed our connection with him with due process. You have slain many of my warriors, indeed, two of your comrades killed my greatest pupil but two days ago. I am willing to forgive this, if you forgive the damage we have caused to you."

The elderly man opened the box, revealing three crystal glasses. One was filled, and the Samurai Kage deftly poured even amounts of it into the other two and extended the box between them. "The drinking of water has long been a custom of peace among my people," he explained. "If you will share it with me my remaining warriors will fight alongside you."

Immediately Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "Very well," he said after a moment. He picked up the glass closer to the Samurai Kage, and the old man did the inverse. After glancing at one another, both of them drained their glasses in the same moment. There was a long pause, the samurai behind their Kage still looking stunned, and then the old man began to laugh.

"You may be a great warrior," he chuckled, "but you are also a great fool! Taking a drink from an enemy... you will be pleased to know that I poisoned your glass. It is essentially impossible to detect, but it kills within minutes in that large of a dose."

"M-Master," one of the other samurai spoke up, "what do you mean by this? Surely to poison a foe under the guise of friendship is the highest dishonor."

"Speak again and I will remove your tongue," the Samurai Kage snapped over his shoulder. "I wish to watch him die."

He turned his head just in time to catch a face full of water from Sasuke, who expelled his unswallowed drink at that moment. With a slight cry the man stumbled backward, coughing as much liquid as he could away. Immediately Sasuke struck forward, kunai flashing at the man's jugular. It crashed off of the Samurai Kage's blade, barely drawn in time.

"Then I must cut you down the traditional way!" the Samurai Kage cried, slashing horizontally at Sasuke's head. The shinobi easily shifted back, evading the attack. His opponent attempted to slash again, but Sasuke leapt back and launched several shuriken. Each was deflected, but Sasuke was already far out of the samurai's range.

The two shifted, watching each other carefully as they circled. Both stopped on opposite sides of the roof, parallel to the line of intensely watching samurai. Sasuke put his hands at his sides, the Samurai Kage readied his blade, and then both of them attacked.

Most of the camp was quite silent, its primary talkers mostly out of commission. Slowly Matthew opened his eyes, glancing up at the mushroom that sheltered them. They hadn't given him any information regarding what was happening and he hadn't asked, either. At this point, he was already far too deep in shinobi policy, and he had no urge to go deeper.

From the scraps of conversation he had heard, however, he could piece together a great deal. Their silent messenger had provided them with a scroll that gave a general concept of an attack; it appeared it would be both large and from all sides. Most likely a collection of all of Father's forces, then. If there was at least one Leaf shinobi in range to deliver a message, there were others that could provide direct assistance. It appeared that the exact number of these was unknown, perhaps even to one another.

In any case, Matthew could also derive a few things from Sasuke's limited reactions. For a brief moment while reading the scroll his eyes had flickered elsewhere, though to where Matthew couldn't be certain. He was, at least in some way, slightly concerned for someone else, if not for the entire situation. What that meant he didn't care to contemplate. As the sun fell, Sasuke had vanished as he usually did; unlike usual Hinata had vanished as well some time later.

Sighing, the doctor sat up wearily. His body still ached, but trying to force himself to rest was only going to tire him out more. If he had to be awake, he might as well be productive while he did so. Briefly he glanced at the other two injured persons in their camp. Ino and Sakura were sleeping back to back, seeming both angry and sisterly at the same time.

"So much as move, and I kill them both," a voice whispered to him as if on the wind. Matthew's eyes widened, and then narrowed, though the rest of his body froze. Slowly he began to comprehend that there was a strange shifting in the air directly over Sakura and Ino. His eyes eventually trained themselves to see past the genjutsu and to the shinobi who held blades to their necks. "Make a sound, and I kill all of you," the shinobi continued, voice incredibly soft.

"What other option do I have?" Matthew whispered back. "Not make a noise and let you kill us all anyway?"

"Exactly!" the shinobi cried, his voice still with the same whispered quality. With that word he hurled several shuriken directly at Matthew.

The doctor's arm flew into action, shifting a scalpel to his fingers and barely managing to knock the shuriken aside. They bit into the mushroom stalk behind them, then exploded in metal wire. Guided by an energy Matthew couldn't completely follow, they curled around him, then snapped tighter, binding his arms and legs to the tree.

"Good," the assassin told him softly, "but not good enough. Your degree of failure is irrelevant, because you will die as surely as if you had blocked none of my shuriken."

"Your logic is in error," Matthew answered. At that moment a kunai slashed across the shinobi's neck. He collapsed to the ground, revealing Sakura and Ino standing behind him, Ino still with a bloody kunai in hand.

"So they found us," Sakura surmised. "How many do you think there are?"

"Too many," Ino breathed, glancing behind her. "I seriously doubt they'll try for any more silent kills, either."

"Not quite." Both of them glanced to the side, startled, to find a shinobi standing beside the mushroom calmly. He held a foreign-shaped kunai to Matthew's neck calmly. "Drop your weapons, all of you, or I kill him very painfully. We'll make this quick if you cooperate."

Silence stretched between the three shinobi and the doctor. Sakura and Ino glanced at one another in shock, uncertain how to act. Sakura began to feel sweat rolling down the side of her head. _I should attack and let him die... but I can't bring myself to do it... I..._

"Sure," Matthew shrugged, as much as he could while bound by wire. He let the scalpel drop from his fingers, and the shinobi glanced to Sakura and Ino.

Before the scalpel hit the ground, Matthew tapped it to the side with his foot, then kicked it up. One of his arms ripped free from the wire, catching the scalpel and slicing the shinobi through the jugular in one clean motion.

Ino and Sakura breathed a sigh of relief, but Matthew merely shuddered. He shouldn't have broken that wire with his arm in the condition it was, but there had been no other choice. Now it was throbbing with pain... and there were shinobi leaping from all the nearby mushrooms toward them.

Hinata continued down the dark street silently, letting her senses gently probe the area. She wasn't sure exactly why Sasuke had left the camp, but she suspected it was due to the overall plan. Perhaps he intended to draw any warriors following him away from their wounded comrades, but he hadn't mentioned it to her. Did that mean he was protecting her as well? No, she decided, he was merely letting her do as she wished.

Hopefully, however, he would sense her chakra and let her find him. They couldn't be exactly certain when the armies would attack, but she hoped that they would have at least a short moment together. Then she could tell him that she loved him; small little things that he wouldn't care about but would appreciate anyway. Every time they entered another battle there was always the chance that one of them would not come out of it alive, and that frightened her. Before, that possibility hadn't bothered her nearly as much.

Something whirled through the air behind her, noiseless but visible to her. She snapped a hand behind herself to catch it. Up close, she realized it was a boomerang, and one that was beginning to hiss. Her eyes widened, and then it exploded in a shower of shrapnel.

Hinata landed some distance down the street even as the clone dissipated. Her attackers were strange; even though she could see them with her eyes she couldn't feel their chakra. There was something there, but it didn't feel completely normal. More what Matthew's energy had felt like. That might mean...

The group standing before her was a surly bunch, and quite large. A massive number of warriors were watching from the shadows and from upper windows of buildings, no longer entirely hiding their chakra. Those didn't concern her in the slightest, however; they were very weak compared to the smaller group of six in the street.

All of them had exactly the same energy type and all wore similar clothing. Looking at them further, Hinata thought she saw a vague resemblance to Matthew. Her eyes widened just slightly, but she gave no other sign of her surprise. None of them had yet spoken, and Hinata wasn't the type to start conversations.

During the silence, she analyzed the group as much as she could. She noted that one of them appeared to be wielding boomerangs, and had probably thrown the first one. At the back of the group was a massive figure who stood a head taller than the rest of them, brown shaggy hair falling to his shoulders. Near him stood a warrior clad entirely in heavy armor. A man and a women nearer the front of the group were both wearing similar loose-fitting clothing.

"We don't know who you are personally," the man at the head of the group stated abruptly, shifting back a pair of thin glasses. He seemed slender and very much like Matthew. "But we do know that you are of the Hyuga Clan. Father has always said that to destroy shinobi, we must be superior to shinobi. So consider this the Ragnarok Clan... we are here to demonstrate our superiority with your dead body."

Instead of talking with them, Hinata slid into a fighting stance. There were so many of them... perhaps more than she could defeat; she couldn't properly judge their strength. In any case, fighting would do her a lot more good than talking.

"I have already struck a blow," one of the group said. Hinata instantly identified him as the one who had formerly thrown a boomerang. "I will finish my own fight." The other five all nodded, though Hinata thought she saw the leader frown slightly.

With a smirk the warrior stepped from the group and stopped some distance from Hinata. For a moment he merely watched her, then his hands few to his sides. Two boomerangs were instantly in his hands, and they flashed through the air at her. Both were easily evaded, but Hinata found herself facing a massive metal boomerang moving directly toward her head.

In midair she flipped, kicking off the boomerang and also evading another thrown at her. She landed, then felt a slight tug of chakra. The smaller boomerang shifted directions in midair, then hurtled back in her direction. Back flipping, she evaded this one as well, only to have it dive at her again.

A slight grin on his face, the warrior hurled another boomerang, this one large and red. Hinata evaded it as well, simultaneously back stepping the homing boomerang, but when it passed her by some distance it exploded in a shower of small red shards that flooded toward her. Instead of dodging, Hinata ran in the direction they were moving, which was toward the warrior who had thrown them.

With startling speed she was almost upon him, and the warrior panicked, pulling another boomerang from his belt. This one burst into a wall of flame before him. Hinata managed to pull back in time, then shot into the air to evade the red shards. These dissipated on the flaming wall, and the warrior smirked as it faded. One of her sleeves had caught on fire before she could pull away. That was a start-

The homing boomerang failed to curve up in time and smacked him directly in the face. He flipped backward from the momentum and collapsed to the ground. Some distance away, Hinata quenched the flame on her sleeve and dropped back into a fighting position. With a growl the Ragnarok Clan warrior flipped back to his feet.

"You're better than I gave you credit for," he admitted. "But you have yet to face my greatest technique, the Eight Swaths of-"

Hinata's hand hit him in the chest, and the chakra around his heart twisted lethally. His sentence unfinished, the man remained on his feet for a moment, then collapsed away from her. Wooden weapons clattered over the street as he fell to the ground and lay still.

"Kill her," the leader of the Ragnarok Clan snapped, and the others immediately charged forward. At the same instant, the small army nestled in the buildings above leapt forward. All of them focused solely upon Hinata.

Her first reaction was to run away, and in this case she decided that was the best choice. She skidded backward across the street, evading the massive attack that ripped a crater in the area where she had been previously standing. It appeared that some of the warriors had waited, however, and now launched themselves at her.

Spinning, Hinata kicked the first of them out of the air, then ducked to evade a slash from the second. The third stabbed down at her head, but she moved too close to him to be struck by the blow and slapped a hand over his heart. As he fell back she leapt off the ground, barely avoiding a stream of flame spat by one of the lesser shinobi.

Two massive arms clamped around her from behind before she could land or think about creating a clone. Looking over her shoulder she recognized the most massive of the Ragnarok Clan, who was steadily attempting to squeeze the life out of her. He certainly had a lot of strength, but not enough of a grip of her. She flowed out of his hold like water, kicking him on the side of the head and leaping away.

He barely stumbled, but Hinata had other things to worry about, such as warrior slicing at her from behind. She whirled just in time to push the blade aside with her right hand and plant her left on the warrior's temple. Several more launched strange, rectangular blades at her the next instant, but she was already leaping away from them.

Landing on the side of a nearby building, Hinata barely had time to duck and evade another of the Ragnarok Clan, who was slashing down at her. Two of the lesser shinobi attacked her from the sides, also running across the side of the building.

Something else caught Hinata's eye first: the man who looked somewhat like Matthew was bent to the ground, carefully making a massive and complex seal of a type she hadn't seen before. He finished and slapped his hands together in a seal, and she instinctively leapt away instead of attempting to combat the nearest opponents. This turned out to be a very wise choice that only barely saved her.

The seals on the ground leapt to life, snaking out into the air and crashing into the space where Hinata had been, going through her two attackers to do so. In the air just above them, she breathed a sigh of relief, only to have the seals shift upward and wrap around her legs. They jerked with startling speed, and though she managed to break her fall being slammed into concrete still hurt.

Back flipping away, Hinata landed on the street again and found herself surrounded by the weaker warriors. All of them were holding the same rectangular blades, looking as though they were ready to strike at any instant. She started building chakra for a clone, but was interrupted by an enormous presence.

Chakra swept across the street like a wind from behind Hinata. It seemed to shift together purposefully, forming a column just before it struck each of the warriors. Rods of chakra slammed into the hearts of all the warriors in the arena, which promptly stopped beating. Hinata was untouched by the attack, which merely curled around her body and passed, and the members of the Ragnarok Clan all defended themselves in various ways.

"This situation strikes me as fundamentally flawed," a voice echoed across the street, seeming to come at once from nowhere and everywhere, making the Ragnarok Clan whip their heads about them swiftly. Hinata didn't need to glance about, but still searched for the speaker. "If you intend to pit your strength against that of the Hyuga Clan, does it not seem more apt to fight the clan itself, instead of merely one member of it?"

"There doesn't seem to be more than one," the leader of the Ragnarok Clan snapped back at the shadows.

"That was true," the voice admitted, "until thirty seconds ago." Abruptly a brilliant light flashed in the street behind Hinata, blinding everyone momentarily but still drawing their collective gaze. When it faded, a form was quite clear standing on the street. He was tall and wearing the traditional uniform of a Jounin of the Hidden Leaf; his long black hair flew randomly behind him in the wind. His eyes were solid white.

"Who's this freak?" the armored warrior muttered. Hinata, on the other hand, appeared overjoyed.

"Neji!"

Calmly the warrior slid across the street and beside Hinata, shifting into a fighting stance as well. His pure white eyes glanced at her just slightly, and then a hint of a smirk appeared on his face. "Well, Hinata-chan? I believe that a challenge has been issued."

* * *

Several of you made mention to the ages of Kakashi and Iruka. Frankly, I blew this aspect of the story. Kakashi is only 14 years older than his students and Iruka even less so. When I was putting together the original plotline I didn't really consider this fact, mentally setting it an indeterminate amount of time into the future (my idea was that leadership of Konoha would have shifted entirely). So Naruto and company are only in their thirties, not in the sixties required to make the older generation of shinobi elderly. I apologize for my oversight. 

That is appreciated, LadyPearlDragon. However, it appears that my schedule will not allow for such. Thank you nonetheless.


	23. Dreams

I had this chapter ready to upload, then somehow managed to forget to do this. I'm sorry about that. All I can say is that it has been a bad week.

It feels as though it has been a long time since I uploaded the previous chapter, though standard calenders indicate it has only been the standard two weeks. I need to apologize to everyone, however: you won't get to see Hinata and Neji fight in this chapter. No, first there is another little diversion that will please many of you...

* * *

Chapter Twenty Three: Dreams 

The rocky tundra was empty, only the slight wind disturbing it. Fairly little dust was blown across it, giving it an endlessly desolate feeling. All that broke the monotony was a city in the distance, a fairly isolated forest with mushrooms growing through and around it and the occasional rocky outcropping. The rocky tundra was empty...

And then heavy boots smashed into it, leaving footsteps in the rock. Two warriors raced across the barren landscape, heading directly for the city. Both of them looked very similar, though one had lightly green skin and the other lightly red. Similar expressions were on their faces, a slightly unnatural grin, and they glanced at one another at the same instant.

"The armies have arrived," one hissed, eyes focusing on the city.

"The shinobi have not," the other added. "Should we shift our targets?"

"Agreed," the first affirmed, gaze flickering to the forest. "It seems that the wounded shinobi have not been eliminated. Should we finish them off and then shift to the primary battle?"

"Agreed," the second echoed. At the same instant both of them shifted, creating obtuse angles of footprints in their wake as they instead ran toward the trees. The distance to the forest was closing rapidly, and it appeared that nothing was going to stop them.

Something blurred from the side with unnatural speed, getting directly in their path before slowing and becoming more resolute. It was a man, but from that distance neither warrior could determine a great deal. The unknown figure did not appear to be gathering any chakra, however, so the two quickly determined the unknown individual was not a threat. Before he could begin a jutsu he'd be sliced into thirds.

Before the two warriors could reach the lone man, he smashed a foot into the stone before him. The impact exploded into the ground, and a massive wall of stone shot into the air. Both of the warriors were forced to run directly up the surface to avoid smashing into it. They flipped backward and landed in mirror fighting positions even as the wall crumbled.

Standing in the falling dust, the man glanced up at them through black locks of hair. The two warriors glanced at him, then at one another. He was wearing a midnight black jump suit, and his hands were bound in black bandages. There was no village insignia or forehead protector to be seen on him, but abruptly one of the two recognized him.

"Rock Lee," it hissed. "What brings you here?"

"I'm not interested in small talk," was his dark reply. "You are attempting to attack warriors unable to defend themselves... I cannot allow that."

"Oh, really?" the other chuckled, voice buzzing slightly. "Are you going to stop us and try to make us play fair? Give us a speech about the rules of warfare? Challenge us to honorable one on one combat?"

"When I said I would not allow that," Lee answered, eyes never wavering, "I meant that I will kill you both."

"Fool! We have records on you, we know that you refuse to use anything but taijutsu. Do you truly believe that will be enough to stop us?" A fist embedded itself in his face the next instant, and he flew backward. Lee paused, glancing over his shoulder at the green skinned warrior just beside him.

"Any other questions?"

"Most effective," the warrior nodded. "But you are not facing the type of opponents you must be used to battling. Indeed, we are not even mere men." Some distance away, the red skinned warrior rose to his feet, licking blood away from his lip. "All of Ragnarok Incorporated's genetic research culminated in the two of us. Do you know what the significance of there being two is? There wasn't enough power to be contained in one individual."

"Apparently it also means you talk too much."

"Die!" the warrior cried, a fist flying for Lee's head. With almost instantaneous speed Lee counterattacked, other arm flying up to backhand his opponent into the air. Leaping after him, Lee kicked at his opponent's torso. The genetically created warrior caught his attack, and he sent hurtling backward by Lee's secondary kick.

The Leaf Jounin landed a moment later, smashing the green skinned warrior in the stomach as he attempted to attack from behind. Lee jerked his arm up, punching the warrior away from him. By this point the red skinned warrior was attacking from Lee's right, but he merely deflected the blows easily with one hand. Moments later his other hand moved into the fray, clamping over his opponent's wrist.

With a swift spin Lee tossed the first warrior into the second, sending them both crashing to the ground. As they struggled to their feet, he dropped back into a fighting position.

"Reports indicated your power accurately, then," the red skinned warrior rasped.

"But what you have spent years achieving through back breaking work, we have attained through mere genetic manipulation," the other mocked. "Our powers go far beyond what yours ever could, limited by your own body." At that moment he reached down to his leg and, in one violent motion, ripped off a portion of skin. Wincing in pain as Lee watched in shock, he reached into his own leg and pulled out something silver.

The weapon spun across the air, blood trailing from it, while its twin found a place in the green warrior's hand. In an instant both of them wielded long but thin metal blades, their edges gleaming dangerously in the low light. Blurring out of existence, Lee appeared directly between them, kicking to either side of himself, but both warriors blocked the strikes with their blades.

As they skidded apart, Lee landed between them calmly. They struck as one, slashing at him. With lightning-like speed, Lee deflected their blows with no more than his bare hands, dancing between them with unnatural grace. Neither swordsman managed to touch him as the three of them continued their dance of death, silver continuing to pursue the dark body that continued to evade each and every strike.

Swinging wildly, the red skinned warrior was momentarily off balance. His eye widened in shock as he abruptly found himself facing black cloth. Arms wrapped around his torso, and suddenly he was rocketing into the air. Almost before he could comprehend what was happened they shot back down again, hammering his head into and through the rock.

"You were going to use a clone, weren't you?" Lee asked, still holding his opponent immobile. "I'm used to that, and I compensate."

"So that..." the warrior groaned from within the rock, "was the Initial Lotus. Very effective... but you don't know what you're dealing with." His left arm, which had formerly been lying limply on the ground, began to shake violently. With the sound of ripping flesh it exploded into a mass of whipping purple tentacles. These snapped around a startled Rock Lee, binding him in place.

Already the green skinned monster was striking, his blade swiping down to decapitate the immobile Lee. Pulling his head free of the tentacles, Lee bit down on the blade before it could strike him, jerking it from his opponent's grasp.

His eyes widened the next instant as both of the green skinned warrior's arms split down the middle, silver glinting within them. Both arms were swung, something erupted in a shower of red and suddenly there were blades that severed through the tentacles to slice their target in pieces. Lee barely managed to push himself free, but they still drew lines of blood across his chest.

The red skinned warrior had somewhat emerged from the ground, though the tentacles that had formerly been his arm still bound Lee in place. A short distance away, the green skinned warrior was grinning savagely. From the elbows down his arms were no more, only long cylindrical blades extending from his bones.

"You're monsters..."

"Monsters?" The red skinned warrior laughed. "We are hardly monsters! We are the next level of man, the next link in human evolution! Do you fear us merely because we had the strength to undergo operations you can scarcely begin to think about?"

"Fear?" Lee asked, eyes flashing. His hands tightened around the tentacles at his neck, and he pulled his opponent into the air, forcing him down at the green skinned warrior. The monster evaded the attack, leaving its sibling to smash into the ground, but Lee had already vaulted off the ground and smashed a kick into its face.

Both of the monsters sailed in different directions, and Lee dropped to the ground. They returned to their feet, hissing in anger. Between them, Lee analyzed the extent the wound on his chest, then whipped his head up, long black hair flying around it, eyes blazing dangerously.

Swiftly he turned toward the red skinned warrior, simultaneously smashing his foot into the ground. A shockwave sped through the rock, barely missing the green fighter, even as Lee charged the other monster. Startled by his speed, the red skinned monster could only lash out, trying to catch Lee directly with one of the purple appendages.

With raw speed Lee continued forward, flickering in and out of the way of the tentacles. All too quickly he was directly before his opponent, clamping his arms around the warrior's stomach even as he shoulder rammed it. Both flew into the air, and as they hurtled horizontally they began to spin. They moved in a straight line until their path abruptly ended in a massive rocky column.

Letting go of his opponent, half embedded in the rock, Lee turned to the other as he shook off the pain in his muscles. Before he could attack the green skinned warrior, however, purple tentacles slipped around his neck from behind and hurled him into the rock.

Lee demolished the column, flying backward and skidding across the rocky ground. Midway through his skid he flipped back to his feet, eyes narrow and looking at his opponent. The green skinned warrior was beside the former rock pillar, extending a hand to its partner. With a broad grin, the red skinned warrior rose to his feet, head covered in blood.

"That form of the Lotus is quite the damaging technique," it grinned. "But it is more effective when one is even capable of feeling pain!"

_Deadened pain sensors?_ Lee narrowed his eyes and dropped back into his fighting stance. So that was how it had counter attacked so quickly. From the rest of the battle, however, he didn't think the other warrior was likewise immune to pain.

"Of course, a lack of pain isn't an end in itself," the warrior continued. It extended a hand to its partner, who pulled another blade from its leg and handed over. "It allows for unheard-of abilities. You're the first person that's ever forced me to use such techniques." Without warning the red skinned warrior drew the blade across its own chest, sending blood into the air. Dropping the blade, it formed a hand seal.

Midway to the ground the blood sprang to life, flying through the air toward Lee. He managed to evade the first wave, but it curled overhead. Above him, the blood formed a dagger and slashed down at him. Utilizing his full speed, Lee back stepped the attack, which shattered against the soil. As the warrior continued shifting through hand signs, the blood found another form, slipping around his opponent's wrist and holding him like steel.

Gasping, Lee tried to pull away as the green skinned warrior struck at him, blade arms flashing dangerously. Just before the blades struck him he vanished before them with unearthly speed, appearing behind the red skinned warrior; all he managed to do was put a hand on his back before the blood was slashing after him. It barely nicked a line of blood on Lee's neck, but he mostly evaded, vaulting forward and hand-springing off his opponent's shoulders.

Just as the green skinned warrior was getting to his feet Lee collided with him feet first. He was sent flying back across the rock, while Lee barely evaded another slash of the animated blood. One of the red skinned warrior's tentacles picked the blade off the ground, drawing another line across him. More blood leapt into the air, forming a gigantic set of teeth that slashed down, only barely missing Lee.

The red skinned warrior was beginning to laugh, harshly and loudly. He had never felt this much power before, surging through his veins like nothing he had ever felt. It was true he had never let this much blood before, but he had never imagined it would make him so powerful. Energy rushing throughout his body addictive waves... he continued to make his blood lash after his opponent, who now could do little more than retreat.

Again Lee passed him, but only managed to touch his leg and couldn't get off an attack. Laughing even louder, the monster sent tendrils of blood snaking into the air. They ripped large columns of rock from the earth and hurled them toward each other with Rock Lee directly between them. The resulting explosion sent rock scattering in every direction.

"Done yet?" Lee asked, standing directly behind his opponent, a hand on his back.

"You can't psyche me with just talk," the red warrior laughed. "You are barely able to defend yourself, much less damage me. I can keep this up until I run out of chakra, and I have ten times more than I thought I ever possessed!"

"Of course you do," came the cold response. "Have you ever heard of the Gates? Each opens immense power within a person, yet causes incredible damage to their body. A healthy and trained warrior can open perhaps the first four safely... I'm willing to bet that having three Gates open will kill you."

"You..." the warriors eyes widened in shock, "you can't... can't actually mean..."

"I'm quite serious," Lee told him, chakra surging down his hand. Abruptly the red skinned warrior felt something snap within it. Power surged around him, and its muscles bulged with incredible force that it had never previously felt. It was awash in a wave of ecstasy... and then there was a profound pain before an endless nothing.

As the red skinned warrior's body crashed to the ground, Lee calmly turned to his remaining opponent, who had been sneaking up behind him. The green skinned warrior froze, and Lee took the moment to wipe a bit of blood off his face and toss it to the rock. Abruptly the other warrior began to laugh, eyes rolling in its head.

"You... killed him," it hissed between laughs. "You... killed... you're going to die!" With an inhuman roar it charged, blades swiping at Lee in swift succession. The first he easily backed away from and the second he brushed aside with a hand. One of his opponent's legs was flying up at him, and he calmly blocked it.

The green skinned warrior changed directions entirely, its other leg arcing through the air toward Lee's head. Raising his other arm, Lee easily blocked it. Idly he noticed that it was his opponent's unopened leg - immediately he threw himself away from his opponent with every iota of speed he could muster.

He was not an instant too late. The green tinted leg exploded in rotating razor blades, all spinning around a thin metal bone. No longer supported by Lee or its momentum, the remaining monster crashed to the ground. Three of its limbs were mostly shredded, and it did not rise. Having barely evaded the last attack, Lee was standing over it.

Just before Lee could drive his foot down on his opponent, he saw a new eyelid contract over his opponent's eye. It was oriented the wrong way, closing to a vertical slit. Acting solely on instinct, Lee pushed away from the ground, just as chakra exploded around his opponent.

When he landed some distance away, only a crater remained where his opponent had once been. Had it been a suicide attack? Narrowing his eyes, Lee remained where he was, tensing his muscles in preparation for movement. There was still a chakra... it was active, pulsing, churning and terribly malevolent. Inside the crater something was definitely alive, and its power was building, no, being unleashed.

Pure chakra emerged from the crater, gripping the side in the form of a massive claw. Another chakra claw grabbed the edge, rock crumbling before it. The monster within pulled itself up, a gigantic lizard of glowing chakra. At its head hung the remains of the green skinned warrior, which were laughing softly and staring blankly in Lee's direction.

"Can't... win," it rumbled. Though the original warrior's mouth moved, it scarcely seemed it was speaking with its own lungs. "A great spirit was bound within me. A mere man cannot stand against it!"

With that roar it attacked, chakra flying out in a raw form. There was no jutsu, no energy, nothing but raw power aiming to annihilate its opponent. Lee flashed to the side, narrowly avoiding the howl of power that carved ridges in the ground. In anger the creature's gigantic chakra eyes fixed upon him, then it trembled.

In that movement a dome of chakra began expanding from it, breaking through the ground at a startling rate and flashing toward Lee. He activated one of his own Gates, then seemed to vanish before the shockwave. Moments later he burst from the earth just before the massive spirit. His heel bashed the green skinned warrior down and into the ground.

This time the roar came not from the warrior, but from the mouth of the spirit itself. A wave of chakra hit Lee head on, blasting him backward. He managed to land and dig his feet in, but the chakra was roaring down on him, the solid wave beating him back and threatening to destroy him every instant. It took another Gate merely to prevent himself from being blown away.

For a moment they remained locked in invisible combat, Lee's chakra being eaten away by the seemingly endless barrage. He gave a loud cry, and another Gate opened. Chakra exploded from him, and the next instant he was no longer in the path of the spirit's attack.

"My time draws short," it rumbled, voice having completely changed. "The soul of this pathetic being is dying. But I swear that you will die with me!" Still in mid jump, Lee felt the air tighten around him. He plummeted, hitting the ground heavily. The lizard was breaking up, but its energy infused the green skinned warrior, whose eyes opened once more. Two voices screamed in the same instant, and the warrior's hand exploded in a chakra claw...

The massive claws pierced Lee through the chest and stomach, pinning him to the ground. While the spirit gave a satisfied grunt the green skinned warrior began laughing slightly madly. Life was fading from its eyes, but it did not stop laughing.

"Not even a shinobi can heal that wound," it cackled. "You and I are finished!"

"Too bad." Lee's lips parted in a bloody smile. The next second his body trembled slightly, then dissolved into a pile of rocks that fell to the ground.

Jaw dropping, the green skinned warrior used his remaining strength to look up. Lee was standing a short distance from him, not at all impaled by the chakra claw that was now fizzling away. The wind was blowing his hair in the way of his eyes.

"How?" it demanded, voice losing power steadily. "Your dream was to become a great shinobi without ninjutsu... your clone makes a mockery of that!"

"You are correct," Lee answered softly, eyes on the ground. "My dream was to become a great shinobi without using anything but taijutsu." He glanced up. "But there isn't any harm in branching out a bit, once one has already become a great shinobi."

The monster made a gagging noise, then its head rolled back and it lay still. For a moment Lee remained alone in the wasteland, holding his injuries slightly, hair flying about him, and then he blurred out of sight. The rocky tundra was empty.

* * *

Next time I promise you really will get to see Neji and Hinata fight the Ragnarok Clan. There will be plenty of other events as well, as the 24th chapter is the largest in this entire story. I hope you will enjoy it as this story comes to a close. 

LadyPearlDragon: Two weeks is time enough for schedules to change. If you still wish to discuss your comments in more depth, I could use your e-mail address again. Listing your e-mail service provider helps somewhat.


	24. Ragnarok

This may come as a surprise to some of you, but this chapter ends the major storyline of this simple fanfiction (and to do that it has to be unusually large). I hope that it does not disappoint; while I think the final revelation flows easily from the text, it may not be as complex as some of you were expecting. There were a number of comments that make a legitimate point that I want to respond to somewhat for all readers, but I'll place this after the story.

Also, this chapter _does_ contain the promised Hinata and Neji fight. It may help to read it slower, as the battle doesn't flow between paragraphs as well as some of my others. I had it in mind in animated form, to be honest with you. Of course, that isn't all this chapter has in store for you...

* * *

Chapter Twenty Four: Ragnarok 

Again the Samurai Kage slashed, and again Sasuke wove away from the blow. As the battle had continued to rage he had patiently and consistently been evading his opponent, waiting for the old man to grow short on breath. It had not been going long, but a smirk was already building on the elderly samurai's face.

They parted, Sasuke's opponent panting slightly and leaning on his blade. Sasuke slid a kunai to his hand, but did not begin his attack when the Samurai Kage pulled something unknown from a pouch. It was a small vial of a liquid that the elderly man downed in a single gulp. He laughed slightly.

"That drug is the most potent battle enhancer Ragnarok Incorporated can provide," he snickered. "It actually improves the synaptic speed, and momentarily makes the body ignore injury and fatigue." Bringing his blade to bear, he continued to laugh.

He did not notice the battles going on all about the city around them as forces clashed. He did not notice the line of samurai watching him, stiff-backed and tight-lipped. He did not notice the dangerous fire that was continually building in Sasuke's eyes; had he seen it, perhaps he would have fled.

But he attacked, again and again. He never succeeded in striking his opponent, but also never let up in the slightest. When he began to grow weary he drank another vial. As the battle went on, the light in Sasuke's eyes continued to grow.

From the sidelines, one of the samurai wearing a blue outfit shivered. He was the chosen warrior after the champion that had been defeated by the other two shinobi. All his life he had dreamed of becoming a samurai, of being trained by the Samurai Kage and of destroying the shinobi world. Finally he had become a samurai, powerful and fearless.

And he was afraid. He sensed something within Sasuke that sent a shiver up his spine. There was incredible destruction there, destruction that was being held at bay by something he did not understand. His master, who he had formerly considered so powerful, would be utterly consumed by this burning flame. If Sasuke ever decided to unleash it, everything would be over.

Leaping back, the Samurai Kage focused and began a technique. Violent winds began to surge around him, creating a shield that appeared to hold Sasuke at bay. He remained where he was, the winds blowing his cloak and hair back. A vortex of power appeared above the Samurai Kage's hand.

"This technique is of such terrible power," he called through the winds, voice distorted, "that it requires a terrible sacrifice. Witness that sacrifice!" Drawing his blade, the Samurai Kage cast it into the vortex. In an instant the steel shattered, and raw power exploded.

The building was torn apart, sending shrapnel flying in every direction and demolishing nearby buildings. Protected by his sphere of wind, the Samurai Kage merely drifted to the ground unharmed, grinning just slightly. All of the other samurai leapt agilely, evading the rubble and landing lightly in a row, exactly as they had stood before. Moments later, Sasuke emerged from the shadows completely unharmed, his back to the line of samurai.

"You still live?" The Samurai Kage seemed shocked, as if such a thing was not even close to the realm of possibility. "Then, shinobi, it is time for you to die!"

Abruptly several of the samurai moved, attacking Sasuke from behind. They grabbed his arms and legs, propelling him across the ruins of the building and pinning him, face up, to a particularly large rock. Grinning maniacally, the Samurai Kage pulled a knife from one of his sandals and began walking toward the bound shinobi, who struggled against his captors in vain.

"The mighty shinobi is finally laid low, eh? You are strong, perhaps as strong as three of my samurai, but you cannot best all four in a contest of strength. Without your darkness to hide in, you are no more than a man, like all the rest of us. And, as I said earlier, it is time for you to die." The knife rose, then plummeted toward Sasuke's heart.

"I will not allow this!" Another hand closed over the Samurai Kage's wrist before it could complete its swing. The samurai in blue had moved from the line, and now held his master's arm fast, preventing his final blow. All of the samurai, those holding Sasuke and those in the line, gasped in shock.

"What are you doing, you fool?" the Samurai Kage demanded. "This disobedience is the ultimate dishonor!"

"You dare to speak of honor?" the younger samurai cried. "You have been nothing but dishonorable since you began fighting this shinobi! If this is what you truly are, then I will have nothing of it!"

"Kill him!" the Samurai Kage roared to the others in the line. All of them began to reach for their blades, but hesitated, shuddering at the conflict of interest. Still struggling against his master, the younger samurai glanced at the others one by one. As each met his gaze, each relaxed his grip on his blade and returned to his position.

Eventually the older man's drugs began to wear off, and he was thrown back by his apprentice. When he hit the ground, he crumpled, and though he returned to his feet he did not seem as if he would attack again.

"Are you unharmed?" the samurai asked, turning to the shinobi. He froze before he spoke or moved any further. The four samurai holding him had drawn their blades, and all four katanas were poised to kill him.

"Move and we slaughter him instantly!" one of them cried roughly. "That goes for the rest of you, too!"

"The Samurai Kage had the right idea!" another barked. "To fight these monsters, we must fight using their own treachery against them!"

"Join us!" the third called. "Together we can usher in an era of samurai!"

"No." The samurai in blue barely whispered the word. It was not an act of defiance, but a simple statement of the truth. His eyes were slightly blank, fixed upon the eyes of the shinobi pinned against the rock. Those eyes that had burned with such fire before were now lifeless.

In one instant it happened. All four of the shinobi fell away, falling to the ground, trailing blood but already dead. The body they had been holding had already shattered to ashes. Sasuke appeared directly behind the samurai like a shadow, eyes burning darkly. A shudder passed through the line of samurai as they began to grasp all that had happened.

"You have a good heart," Sasuke said softly to the samurai's back.

"Please, Sasuke-dono," the man implored him, turning with a slight bow. "I wish to appease my honor by slaying my master, but he is your opponent alone. To interfere with the battle before one has been defeated would be most dishono-"

Sasuke's flickered away, appearing before the Samurai Kage and smashing a palm into his chest. The man was flung backward, crashing into a building. He staggered to his feet, but could barely lean against the concrete.

"He has been defeated," Sasuke answered, reappearing before the startled samurai. "There is no dishonor in finishing what is already inevitable. I must go."

"We do not wish to delay you." Again the samurai gave a slight bow.

"Leave the city," the shinobi ordered them, even as he began to move away. "If you do not do battle, you will not be harmed. After all that must be completed has been finished, then we will discuss peace." Sasuke vanished into the darkness.

* * *

The Hyuga and Ragnarok Clans faced off on opposite sides of the street. Though the latter group was much larger, they seemed more than slightly disturbed by Neji's arrival. Only the leader seemed unmoved, still swiftly creating seals on the street before him. As the others hadn't attacked yet, Neji continued to speak to Hinata. 

"It has been a while, hasn't it?" She nodded with a slight smile. "It will be interesting to see how you have progressed."

"Is everything at home still alright?"

"As well as can be expected. How are you?"

"Well... I..." Hinata glanced to the side, and Neji instantly noticed. Before he could say anything else, however, their opponents attacked.

Pulling several knives, the leader struck them across his seals and sent them tumbling into the air. There were four, Neji saw instantly, one for each of the others, and each knife was now bound by further seals. Two of the Ragnarok Clan instantly hurled their blades; Hinata grabbed hers by the handle and Neji calmly stopped his between two fingers.

Both knives exploded the next second, but passed through nothing but air. The Hyugas were already racing across the street toward their opponents. One of them bolted in the opposite direction, aiming to clothesline them both, but was easily flowed around by the two without slowing. Neji and the first of the Ragnarok members clashed, neither connecting.

Narrowing her eyes, the other warrior began shifting her hands before her, in constant motion as Neji merely watched and waited. Eventually she struck at him in a series of swift punches, only to find each and every one evaded. Neji flipped over her the next second, kicking her from behind. She whirled, both fists moving for him. His hands came up, blocking each with a flat palm.

Hinata ducked beneath a slashing blade and immediately flipped away to avoid the kick of the completely armored opponent. While flipping, she noticed that the leader was flipping through the same katas he had before launching his seals toward her earlier, this time focused on Neji. Sliding a kunai out of her sleeve, she hurled it directly into the center of his workings, hoping it would throw him off. He hissed in surprise, and instantly shifted the technique he was using.

The next time Neji did not both to dodge, and his opponent's fists struck him. They bounced off like pebbles, and for a moment she paused in shock. Energy wasn't moving to her fists anymore... why wouldn't it- her bewilderment was ended when Neji smacked a hand onto her forehead.

Abruptly the kunai jerked off the ground, seals covering it, and flew toward Hinata. She jerked to the side, catching the blade as it moved past and then hurling it back. The leader's eyes widened slightly, but he managed to catch the blade before it struck him. It began to burn, but before it exploded he changed hand signs again, and the seals on it shifted to make the weapon harmless.

Hearing footsteps behind her, Hinata realized the armored warrior was attacking from behind, blade in hand. She wasn't going to be able to dodge... but she didn't need to, as one second later Neji caught her around the waist, pulling her back away from the slash. After it passed over her, Hinata struck back, kicking the armored warrior away from them both.

She landed, and the next instant Neji used her as leverage to kick in midair. To his surprise, the warrior he had struck at caught his leg and jerked. Hinata gasped as she realized that he intended to smash Neji head first into the concrete, but was forced to leap away to evade a massive fist coming her direction the next second.

Neji rocketed toward the ground, but at the last second put his hands out, catching himself and stopping his momentum instantly. His free leg struck back, sharply cracking against his opponent's head. The movement made his opponent lose his grip, and Neji flipped back to his feet, striking the enemy warrior's chest with a palm the next instant.

Again the armored warrior struck at Hinata, barely missing as her target wove to the side. She tried to strike again, but the Hyuga had already struck back. Her hand collided with the front of the heavy armor and stopped cold. Across the battlefield, Neji glanced back to Hinata, realizing her attack had been stopped.

"Is that all?" the voice from within the armor mocked. "Do you really think that your soft styled techniques are going to be able to hurt me?"

Closing her eyes, Hinata extended her chakra beyond her hand. It passed through her opponent's armor, striking the heart. The suit of armor remained standing, lifeless, until Hinata withdrew her hand and it crashed forward. From across the battlefield, Neji smirked just slightly.

The next instant he was forced to leap into the air to evade long tendrils of seals that tried to snap around his legs. Even after he jumped, however, they followed him up, barely catching his ankles. Neji's jump was halted, and blade-like formations of seals sliced at him from every direction.

Just before they struck, Neji _whirled,_ chakra flying from his body. The blade-like seals connected and were shredded, the seals binding his legs snapped and fell to the ground lifelessly. Ending his spin, Neji hurled several shuriken toward the leader. He abandoned his seal workings and leapt away barely in time.

"Behind you!" Hinata called, but a moment too late. Massive arms clamped around Sasuke, pinning his arms to his sides. The giant of a warrior crashed to the ground, still holding his prisoner firmly, then began to squeeze.

"You guys are slippery punks," he growled. "This time, though, you're not gonna get away from me until I crush the life out of you."

"Actually, I was waiting for an opportunity like this," Neji told him. "At least sixty of your chakra points are in direct contact with min-"

"Shut up!" the Rangarok Clan member tightened his grip, making Neji gasp just slightly in pain. "You're going to die, and you know it!"

At that moment Neji turned to glance at him, and there was a disturbing smirk upon his face. Chakra pulsed from his Byukagen, and then exploded from his back. The massive warrior seemed to be ripped apart from within, so quickly he did not even bleed. Neji landed lightly on his feet as the suit fell to the ground behind him. He glanced at the leader, still shifting through hand seals, and dropped into his fighting stance.

"Too late!" the leader abruptly smirked. He ceased his hand seals and pushed his glasses up his face in a decidedly Matthew-esque gesture. "We have all sorts of information about your clan, enough to know that you are of the Branch of the Hyuga Clan... and what that means." Nej returned his gaze coldly. "Your seal was particularly difficult to break into, but I suppose that's to be expected for something that causes instant death and can't be removed. Now die!"

The large circle of seals about the leader of the group pulsed with energy and began to glow. Their light flashed across the street, striking Neji directly in the forehead. He stumbled backward... and caught himself with his other foot. Calmly his gaze flickered back up to his opponent, and he smirked just slightly.

"Imp... impossible!"

"Nothing but death can remove the seal, but I learned long ago that not everything is that simple." Neji told him. "Fare well." At that moment Hinata dropped down behind the leader of the Ragnarok Clan, her hand lightly touching his back. For a moment his face remained in a stunned position, then he pitched forward, blood welling up in his mouth.

"You appear to have developed well," Neji told her. The street around them was heavily damaged and littered with bodies, leaving only the two of them standing facing each other. "I do not regret counting you a member of my family."

"Thanks." Before she could say more, a wave of chakra appeared on the edge of her senses, dozens of bodies leaping through the city toward them. She glanced back to Neji. "Should we fight them, too?"

"No," he answered. "That won't be necessary."

* * *

Sakura hurled another shuriken, forcing her attacker to stop his charge momentarily. That was her last one, she realized. Already she just wanted to fall down and lie still; her body was burning with pain. That wasn't an option right now, though. Thus far she had been able to hold off the enemy assassins by fighting a battle of few encounters and running when possible, but they were surrounded in a clearing, now. 

Another wave leapt toward them, and she backed up involuntarily. She bumped into Ino, who had done exactly the same thing. They glanced at one another nervously, then prepared for the strike. Nearby, Matthew staggered to his feet. He didn't have to calculate the odds to know that this was it unless a new quantity was introduced.

Suddenly something in the clearing shifted. The shadows began to change, and Sakura realized that they were moving up her leg. She hadn't expect a jutsu like this... it was definitely over. Chakra bent the shadows up all three of them, surrounding them entirely. Sakura closed her eyes and waited for the end.

Violent winds rushed past her, chilling her to the bone but not actually touching her body. Then the darkness around her faded, and she opened her eyes in shock. The assassins who had been leaping at her lay in a crumpled heap at the edge of the clearing. Immediately she glanced behind her, toward the source of the interference.

At just that moment Temari snapped her fan shut. Shikamaru, on a branch above her, leaning against the trunk, took his hands out of a seal and put them in his pockets.

"You didn't think we were going to let you fight an army by yourselves, did you?" Temari grinned. "Hidden Sand is here."

Before they could speak any further, another group of assassins burst into the clearing. They were quite clearly aimed toward Shikamaru and Temari, but neither of them did anything. As the group began to reach for weapons, the earth beneath them exploded like liquid. It wrapped into the air, completely encasing the attacking warriors in their positions. Moments later a warrior clad in a brown flak jacket stepped up onto the small hill.

"Hidden Stone is here."

Several shinobi emerged from the shadows behind him, slashing with long, pole-like weapons. At the same time another set of warriors charged into the clearing, katanas ringing from their sheaths. Just as they rose up behind the Stone warrior, the entire group crumpled in midair, crashing to the rock pile below. The samurai charging at the wounded shinobi were abruptly swept by a blast of frigid air, all of them freezing in their places.

Shadows melted away from the forest, and a warrior with burning black eyes became visible, two fingers raised to his face. "Hidden Mist is here."

Ending his stream of freezing breath, a warrior with light blue hair landed beside Matthew. "Hidden Cloud is here."

"Do you think I should tell them Hidden Leaf is here?" Ino muttered over her should to Sakura. "I'm getting the urge to."

"I know. Do you think they rehearsed that beforehand?"

"If the pattern holds," Matthew interrupted them, "we'll be seeing more of your allies when that miniature army reaches us." They followed his pointing finger with their eyes to the large group that was charging all the shinobi within the clearing.

Blurring almost to the point of being invisible, a warrior skidded between the three of them and the approaching warriors. It spun a low kick to the ground, not striking anything but generating a massive burst of wind that knocked the attackers off their feet. They had not hit the ground before a cry was heard from the side, and a storm of weapons flashed through the group with lethal effect.

They glanced to the side to see Tenten return her scrolls to their places, but their gaze was quickly drawn elsewhere. Finishing his spin, the warrior before them turned to the group, one hand still raised. Lee gave them a slight smile. "Hidden Leaf is here."

* * *

He did not look like a revolutionary. The man sitting calmly in the empty office was quite average, and would not have merited a second glance on a normal street. His suit was neat and well-ironed; his figure was decent but obviously aging. Many called faces similar to his fatherly. Indeed, he was often known as Father. 

Reports as of late had been most troubling, but ultimately irrelevant. He continued to tap his fingers against each other, considering the empty office before him as he pondered the situation. It appeared that Matthew was still quite at large, and that his wife had been killed. Currently he and a few of the accursed shinobi had been located in a small forest not far from the city. Forces were targeting them, but the man seriously doubted that he would be killed by them.

His eventual death, however, was far more certain. No member of his clan would survive the purge that would surely sweep over this city. When the time came, they would crush Matthew with all the rest. But in that very action they would complete his plan.

No part of him truly believed that he could defeat the shinobi of the world. They were the military of every country, the driving force behind all wars, men walking among insects. It was not possible to kill all of them, even with all the forces he had carefully cultivated. A smile worked its way across his lips, and he began to grin. Why should he destroy individuals when he could destroy the very system that created them? He did not hate those individuals, he hated the shinobi way of life. A system that created merciless, inhuman killers... if he had to be destroyed along with it, so be it.

Even now his plan was reaching its final stage. The ultimate battle was being waged, and his forces would soon spill all their blood on the city streets. But, so like the namesake of his organization, their deaths would signify the ending of this cycle of history and the ultimate victory of his plan.

He knew shinobi. He knew their ways far better than he wished to understand anything so terribly corrupt. They would be victorious on the military plane, yes, but the political fallout would be their doom. Nation would take up sword against nation, and they would fight to the death in the very streets where they had soon recently been victorious. Shinobi were always itching to fight one another, and this time the result would be a bloodbath. Whether they killed him as well did not matter, for he would die knowing that the shinobi way of life would destroy itself forever.

The seeds had been planted in all the nations. It had taken him a long time indeed to make them understand, for they still viewed the shinobi as their armies. But many of them now understood that this weapon was too dangerous, and would destroy them if allowed to grow any longer. None of them knew of all he had done, but they would welcome it when this cancer was blotted from the earth. Certainly, some would survive, but they would be subjugated by the governments, made into a feeble shadow of what they once were. This era was about to come crashing to an end...

"Sir!" An aide emerged from the doorway before him, and the Father glowered at the man. "Sir, less than twenty seconds ago five shinobi entered this very building! It seems that they're coming for you directly; the Seven are already in place if you intend to escape."

"It will not be necessary," the man waved a hand in dismissal. "A mere five shinobi do not stand a chance of reaching me if they begin from the bottom. This building is filled with floor upon floor of the greatest of our warriors; I sincerely doubt these five will even reach the Seven."

"Well, we didn't reach the Seven, whoever they are." The aide had spoken, but his voice had changed dramatically. Both of his eyes had rolled back in his head. Startled, the mastermind pushed himself back in his chair as the aide continued speaking. "But regardless, we're already here."

The next moment the man collapsed to the floor. What little light there was in the room was abruptly quenched, and shadows covered everything. Where the aide had stood was the silhouette of a person; squinting, the Father realized she was only a young girl. No... she was much older, but she seemed small and frail. She entered, and four shadows slipped after her. Each of the people entering the room was dressed exactly alike: long robes and a broad, circular hat.

"You may know who we are," the man in the middle of the group said. He propped back his hat slightly, revealing a face that looked as though it often held a grin, though now it was completely serious. "We are called the Kages, or the shadows. We are the champions of each of the five great shinobi villages."

"And so you come at last," he nodded to them, eyes narrow. "To kill me, I presume? Killing is what you're here for after all, isn't it?"

"You are not worth death," the Kazekage intoned. His eyes spoke of a contained bloodlust, sending a chill down the Father's spine.

"No," the Tsuchikage agreed, flipping back a lock of her short brown hair, "we are here for a different reason. At long last we understand what you have been trying to destroy: the shinobi world."

"And destroy it I will," he returned levelly. So they had figured it out. No matter, events were beyond their control.

"Not if we have anything to say about it," the Hokage cut him off before he could think any further. "The five of us are here not because it takes all five to kill you. We are here because we stand together in the face of the destruction you represent. And however you think you can stop us, you will be fighting far more than merely one village. You are fighting us all."

The only response was the beginning of a laugh. Slowly the Father's head turned his slightly, his eyes vacant, laughing softly. Could they actually control their forces enough to prevent the plan? Was it possible he had overestimated and that all of this would come to naught? "Never!" he abruptly cried. "Never! You shall all perish!" He bolted out of his chair and rushed across the room, leaping through the massive glass window. None of the Kages moved as they watched him fall from the building.

"Do you trust your man to do the job?" the Raikage asked roughly. Naruto nodded with a slight smile on his face.

"As I would trust myself."

* * *

Wind rushed past his face, pushing tears out of the eyes of the man called Father. He continued to plummet down toward the ground, which grew to meet him at a startling rate. As he fell, a grin began to work its way across his face. 

They had let him go. The fools had truly believed he was committing suicide. Well, it would be their loss. Even if they did not destroy one another, and he had blocked all other possibilities from his mind, he would be free to attack them again. All it would take were a few lies in the right ears, a few well-placed rumors. One way or another, it would be crushed.

There. One of the Seven was vaulting up the side of the building to catch him and render the long fall harmless. He had trained all of them himself, and judged them to be the most powerful of all his forces. In them was his hope for the utter destruction of shinobi: they represented the epitome of his dream, of all that he had spent his life to create.

Abruptly he realized that something was wrong, even as he was gently caught and continued to drop to the ground at a steadily slowing rate. Where were the other six? The ground at the base of the building was littered with seven suited bodies that he abruptly recognized as the Seven. Who, then-

Sasuke landed on the ground lightly, just as the man in his arms gave a loud cry. Eyes not even flickering, he smashed the Father into the side of the building, pinning him there at eye level, his feet dangling off the ground.

"We shinobi have a gift for you," he said softly. "It is one that we feel is worthy of the war you have waged." Abruptly his dark eyes blazed red. His pupils expanded, becoming terrible three pointed stars that seemed to burn into the Father's vision. For a moment he was falling, falling through time, and then suddenly he was spinning in darkness.

"This is the record of a battle that took place not long ago," a voice whispered at the edge of his consciousness. "Bear witness to it."

_"Who are you?" The leader of the Seven folded his arms and frowned sternly at the intruder. Behind him, the other six members of the elite glanced at this newcomer with varied levels of hatred or amusement. They were spread about the base of the building, awaiting their orders or the arrival of their master._

_The man who had approached did not answer. Uchiha Sasuke was not even looking at the Seven; his eyes were closed and his arms folded within his long black cloak. He did not speak, even as the group circled around him._

_"I guess you aren't anyone, then," the leader smirked. "But let me tell you who we are. Father has called us the Ultimate Seven. Our true name is the Anti-Shinobi, the warriors that will be your doom and the destruction of all your kind."_

_At just that moment a blade slid between Sasuke's shoulder blades, erupting out his chest in a shower of ashes. The rest of his body dissipated the next moment, his true form appearing directly behind the anti-shinobi who had struck him. He glanced up, his eyes burning with a terrible fire, and then he struck, backhanding entirely through his opponent's body._

_Even as the first of the anti-shinobi fell, Sasuke was whirling away, evading the attacks of the others. He had barely landed when the three anti-shinobi nearest him attacked at once. Without giving any ground he struck back, his eyes spinning with the Sharingan. None of the attacks struck him, and he remained exactly where he had stood before._

_Another of the anti-shinobi struck the next moment, slashing directly at Sasuke with a long katana. Without blinking Sasuke grabbed his opponent's blade, jerking it in the opposite direction and decapitating him in one stroke. The others were attacking from behind, and Sasuke whirled to them, dropping the fallen anti-shinobi._

_One of his fingers abruptly lit afire with blue flame, and he ended the first of his opponent's lives with it instantly. Another struck at him from the left, and Sasuke batted him aside, the blow sending the anti-shinobi flipping through the air to crash into the building several stories above._

_Sasuke froze as he felt cold metal on his throat. Behind him, one of the anti-shinobi held a thin blade at his neck. Instantly he jerked it back, intending to end his target's life. One moment Sasuke was there before him, and the next he stood behind him, his own kunai at the anti-shinobi's neck. Moments later he collapsed to the ground as well._

_Dozens of suited men abruptly began appearing, surrounding Sasuke in a broad circle. They continued to build around him, all moving in identical ways, all not quite moving to attack. Sasuke's gaze snapped directly over his shoulder to meet the eyes of the anti-shinobi behind him who was working the illusion. Abruptly his clones leaped out of his control, piling onto the creator of the illusion from all sides. The next second they exploded, creating an inferno that raged past Sasuke and blew his cloak and hair behind him but did not touch him._

_The last of the anti-shinobi was in the air, fist raised and flying toward Sasuke's back. Calmly, and seemingly in slow motion he turned. Blue and black energy raged in one of his hands, forming a chaotic sphere that Sasuke plunged into his opponent. Chakra obliterated the last of the anti-shinobi__entirely._

_Lowering his arm, Sasuke began to move away. He was halted by a faint cough, and glanced behind him calmly. One of the anti-shinobi still lived, and was looking up at Sasuke with dying eyes._

_"Who..." he gasped for breath, "who are you?"_

_"I am a shinobi."_

_Then everything faded into darkness..._ and the Father cried out, beginning to weep at what he had seen. Terrible... so terrib-

_"Who are you?" The leader of the Seven folded his arms and frowned sternly at the intruder. Behind him, the other six members of the elite glanced at this newcomer with varied levels of hatred or amusement. They were spread about the base of the building, awaiting their orders or the arrival of their master._

_The man who had approached did not answer..._

* * *

Glass shattered overhead, and five cloaked forms burst into the sky. They dropped toward the ground swiftly, all landing quite softly in a semi-circle behind Sasuke. He turned and left the Father partially embedded in the wall, eyes open but unseeing, lips babbling incoherently. 

"Is it done?" Naruto asked him. Sasuke merely nodded.

"What will happen to him?" the Mizukage asked.

"He will live," Sasuke told her. "At least until his body runs out of nutrients. Until then, he will relive my battle, exactly as we had agreed." He glanced up at the assembled body of shinobi, some of the most powerful warriors in the world. "Is the battle over? I have other business to take care of here."

"You may go," Naruto grinned at him just slightly. "Thanks, Sasuke-kun." Bowing slightly, Sasuke faded into the shadows. The remaining five stood silently for a moment, then Naruto glanced at them. "We have much to discuss, don't we? Will you do the honors, Raikage-san?"

"If you insist." The man tossed two scrolls into the air. Above the group they opened, pages curling around the five shinobi in broad arcs. There was a flash of chakra, and then there was only the sound of the wind.

* * *

The shinobi camp had been made in the forest, primarily because it seemed the easiest place. All five major villages had already been represented, and several others had quickly appeared. There was still fighting going on elsewhere in the city, and one larger battle to the west, but most of the shinobi were all relaxing and nursing wounds. At the edge of the city a hospital had been commandeered by the shinobi for those critically injured. 

In the center of the grand encampment sat the original camp, looking much the same as it had before. Sakura and Ino both reclined on opposite sides of what had formerly been their fire. A medical shinobi from Hidden Stone had healed their wounds, but the jutsu left both of them feeling sluggish.

Not so Matthew, who was currently some distance away, intensely discussing the finer points of chakra-based health care with the shinobi who had healed them. There was silence around the camp site for some time, then several shinobi approached them.

"The battle is mostly done," Tenten announced, leaning against a mushroom stalk nearby. "Enough that we decided to call it a day, anyway."

"That's nice," Ino answered, not really caring much more than that.

"Are you doing alright?" Lee sat down on a log around the former fire, glancing at them. Sakura glanced at him with bleary eyes, then glanced again. She sat up, blinking rapidly.

"I'm just fine, Lee-kun," she eventually greeted him. "I didn't know you were here."

"Almost everyone is," he answered. "How long has it been since we had a real chance to talk... four, five years?"

"Longer than that. Wow, you re-"

"Hey." Shikamaru's voice interrupted the conversation as he landed beside the group. He was addressing Tenten, who raised an eyebrow questioning. "Is Chouji-kun here with the rest of the Hidden Leaf army?"

She shook her head. "He was doing spy work far south, didn't think he'd get here in time for the main attack. He might be around, but I can't help you."

"Don't worry about it," he shrugged, though his bored expression saddened slightly. "I'll run into him eventually, I'm sure." Raising two fingers, he vanished in a shower of sand. Hinata emerged quietly from another part of the forest not long after, taking her place around the fire without comment.

"Yo," Lee greeted her with a friendly smile. "Glad to see you're doing fine."

"Hello, Lee-san," she smiled in return. "I'm glad you could make it."

"Yeah, me too. It turned out to be the perfect way to see how well all my recent training has been paying off."

"Speaking of that," Ino spoke up, eyeing Lee with a raised eyebrow, "since when have you grown your hair out long like that? It looks a lot nicer than that silly bowl-cut you had last time I saw you."

"Now what would Gai-sama think if he could hear you?" Lee asked her reprovingly. "I have half a mind to cut it back just for that comment."

"No, don't do that," Sakura shook her head. "It looks really good, actually." She extended a hand toward one of Lee's dark locks-

"Hey, now, hands off." Tenten's arms slipped around Lee's neck from behind, halting Sakura's hand in its place. Very quickly Sakura pulled her hand back and sat on it, glancing to the side as if nothing at all had happened.

"You two," Neji snapped in passing. "Not in public. Do you have any idea how disconcerting that is, being your former teammate?"

"Sorry, sorry." Lee and Tenten vanished entirely and Neji continued walking, face as dour as usual. Hinata thought she saw the faintest of smiles in his eyes, however. That left only the three of them sitting in a rough triangle. In retrospect she realized that was somewhat ironic: this entire business was ending with the same people it had began with. Of course, it wasn't really over, but she couldn't escape the feeling.

"I can't believe that was really Lee-kun," Sakura muttered.

"I know," Ino agreed whole-heartedly. "It's been ages since I last really saw him, since he spends all his time not on assignment training."

"Not entirely training, evidently," Sakura glanced to the side as if suspicious. "But man, he really changed. I mean, somewhere along the line he got decent fashion-sense, long hair and good looks. And he sort of grew into those caterpillar eyebrows, too, didn't he?"

"But, of course, he's taken now. I hadn't even heard about it, that's really weird."

"Yeah, those things just sneak up on you when you don't see someone for a long time. I'm sure it would have been obvious if I'd been there, though."

"Well, duh," Ino rolled her eyes, "falling in love is a pretty obvious thing. It isn't like it just happens around you during a mission or something. Seems like all the good guys get taken."

"Sasuke-kun isn't, though," Sakura whispered with a mischevious glance.

"Not for long!" Ino shot back.

"Oh, really? Wel- wait a sec, where is Sasuke-kun?"

Both of them paused, glancing at one another. They searched about the massive camp for a moment, but couldn't find the cloaked shinobi anywhere.

"Do you really think..."

"Could Sasuke-kun have been..."

"The hospital!" they cried at once. But before they moved both of them stopped at exactly the same time, strange expressions on their faces.

"You know," Sakura mused. "I was talking without really thinking about what I was saying, more out of habit than anything else. But, when I really think about it, I'd rather not try to find Sasuke. I'm sure he's fine, and he'd probably just get annoyed again."

"I know what you mean." Ino sighed and glanced into the trees overhead. "Actually, I think I'll help Shikamaru-san try to find Chouji-san. I haven't talked to him in years."

"Mind if I join you?"

"Not at all. Do you think we can find him without getting into an argument?"

"Oh, you're on."

They left the campfire, where Hinata hadn't moved from her spot, smiling slightly. Two other pairs of eyes watched them move away. As Sakura and Ino moved to the west, they had to get through a crowd of girls moving in the opposite direction, saying something about rumors that Sasuke had been critically injured. By the time they were out of sight there were nearly a dozen of them, all racing each other to the hospital.

"In all likelihood," Lee shook his head in slight amusement, "Sasuke-kun barely got a scratch. They're wasting their time at the hospital."

"Probably, but they'll just try to find him elsewhere," Tenten pointed out, leaning her head on his shoulder. "They won't give up until they know for certain."

"Wow. I really would have thought they'd have left that behind them decades ago. I'm glad you did." His arm around her shoulder squeezed just slightly.

"Me too, Lee," Tenten smiled. "Me too. I kind of have to wonder, though: why did you grow your hair out long? I'm not critical - it looks nice - but I'm curious."

"This?" Lee glanced at a lock of it as if it was completely foreign to him. "I think I just never bothered to cut it while I was training. When someone is serious about training, that kind of thing falls by the wayside."

"At least you bathed," Tenten laughed. Lee's laughter joined hers.

"Well, I still have to deal with other people, don't I? But actually, I'm going to be very glad to just relax for a while after all this. The past years have been nothing but training, then that one complicated mission, and now this whole mess. While this blows over, I doubt I'm going to have to do very much, and that's going to be nice."

"We've certainly been working long enough. I'll be looking forward to this."

* * *

Holding his head for a moment to stabilize himself, Matthew forced himself to continue writing. This was the part of his job that he'd always hated the worst, and now he was doing it almost constantly. Instead of dealing in life, he was being forced to deal constantly in death. Before him was a great deal of impromptu data, scribbled on small scraps of paper. 

Deaths. There had been dozens of deaths in the massive battle, a painful number of them shinobi. Even those fighting for the opposite side often had family and, by the Hokage's orders, they had to be notified as well. So it became his task to compile a complete list of deaths, and also write letters to the families on the side.

Or lend chakra for an operation, or contribute to a tricky case, or handle the many nervous visitors, or pretty much do whatever. Though there was some order about the simple hospital, it was pretty loose. In any case, he was merely a volunteer, so no one was going to rag on him too heavily. As it had turned out, the shinobi he had been talking to was one of those that had been put in charge of the collective hospital. Their conversation had naturally taken them back to it, and he'd offered to do whatever he could.

Which had him writing letters to the families of the dead. He'd gotten to help with a few operations, but he'd been mostly needed here. Even shinobi, he had come to realize, worried about their loved ones and panicked when their status was unknown. _Very human characteristics_, he reflected.

"Um, Matthew-san?" The quiet voice intruded on his thoughts, but he didn't mind. Glancing up, he saw the medical shinobi he had spoken to before in one of the corridors. "Do you have any idea why there would be a mob of women, all from Hidden Leaf, rushing toward the hospital?"

Blinking in surprise, Matthew got up and glanced out the window. Sure enough, there was a pretty big group running toward them, Ino and Sakura leading the bunch. Rolling his eyes, Matthew threw up his hands.

"I could give you a pretty good conjecture. I'll handle this mess; you do something important."

She blinked strikingly yellow eyes, then nodded and vanished into another one of the corridors. Returning to his desk, Matthew hastily began to appear incredibly engrossed in his work. Not that it would really change anything, but he felt that the futile action did him a bit of psychological good.

The foyer door opened, and did not close immediately. He did not bother to glance up, and hastened his writing speed. It seemed that multiple individuals were entering, if the door was still open. Their footsteps seemed irregular, as if they were walking against each other, not to a similar location. Definitely the mob, then.

A larger woman managed to get into the room first, just before numerous other girls stumbled in behind her. They all appeared to be slightly out of breath.

"Where's Sasuke-kun?" another gasped, pushing the first person aside.

"Is he alright?" a voice cried from the back.

"Has he been admitted to the hospital?" another asked, capturing the front.

"Will he be alright?" Another woman demanded. "How long will it take for him to recover?"

"We heard he was placed in intensive care!"

"Sasuke?" Matthew let himself appear somewhat surprised. "No, no. He isn't in intensive care. In fact, he isn't even," he paused briefly, glancing to the side, "conscious. He didn't take any critical physical damage, but he used enough chakra that he won't be awake for a few days, at the very least."

"Thank you!" the first girl beamed, relief evident on her face. "Could you give him this rose when he wakes up and tell him it was from me?"

"Oh, and mine!"

"Me too!"

"Me! Me!"

"Sure." Matthew shrugged, setting the plethora of flowers and other items neatly at the side of his desk. "I'll be sure to tell you the moment he wakes up." Slowly the women filtered away, most of them with longing glances down the hospital corridors. Eventually all of them were gone. Silence reigned in the hospital, broken only by the scratching of Matthew's pen on his paper.

With a subtle movement he brushed the presents from the table and into his trash can beside the desk. He pushed up his glasses, which reflected so that his eyes were completely invisible when he turned around just slightly in his chair.

"It helps when you tell me about these things beforehand."

Through the door directly behind Matthew, Sasuke materialized on the bed, chakra unweaving around him. He was sitting calmly, his arms folded and his eyes closed. At that moment they opened, swiftly and clearly.

"Thank you, Matthew-san."

"I suppose you'd like me to list you as occupying the room," Matthew turned back around, continuing his work. "That's workable, and I can probably manage to get you classified so that visitations are not permitted. It won't matter greatly, though, as I imagine we'll be leaving this building before too long. By the way," he added, even as he started another letter, "she's on the roof."

With a slight smirk, Sasuke vanished from the bed. At his desk, Matthew permitted himself a slight smile.

A puff of chakra announced Sasuke's arrival on the rooftop. It was a fairly high building, surrounded by the broad, clear sky. Sasuke's gaze instantly moved to Hinata's slender form at the far side of the roof. Silently he crossed the distance between them and stopped just behind her. Having sensed him long ago, she turned toward him with the scarcest of smiles.

"Did everything work out?" she asked him quietly.

"Matthew-san caught on very quickly. Until we leave, I'll be officially unconscious due to chakra depletion and unable to see anyone. I sincerely doubt you are counted in that number."

Hinata didn't answer him. She was wonderfully glad he was safe, but she knew that he would assume as much and that saying so would be pointless. Instead she just hugged him, and he hugged her back gently. It accomplished much the same thing.

"You?" he asked. "I didn't get to ask you before how the battle went for you."

"I had a few wounds, but it was nothing that Matthew-san couldn't heal fairly easily. I'm just fine," she murmured, resting her head on his chest. "Just fine."

For a long time they didn't move, not needing or wanting to. Eventually Sasuke kissed her softly, and they remained embraced there for some time longer. Suddenly chakra swept across the roof beside them, making them part and glance up. In the wake of the wind pulled by the chakra stood Neji, standing with his arms folded and his hair flying wildly to the side.

There was a long pause. Sasuke and Hinata remained where they were, watching Neji, whose eyes revealed absolutely nothing. Silence continued to stretch, and eventually Neji stepped forward.

"I was going to ask Hinata-chan if she needed somewhere to camp, but I think I'll just be on my way." His words broke the tension, and Hinata smiled gently at him. Sasuke gave him a polite nod. Turning away from them, Neji stepped to the edge of the roof, looking out over the city. "The Hyuga and the Uchiha clans are going to be reunited, it seems. The two of you have my blessing, in any case. And now," he gave them a slight bow, "I believe that my presence would be better served elsewhere."

White energy leaped from the roof, surrounding him, and when it faded Hyuga Neji was gone.

* * *

Wordlessly Gaara surveyed the city from his perch atop one of the remaining standing buildings. Blocks upon blocks had been decimated, stretching into the distance. There were hundreds of casualties, mostly in the attacking armies but far too many from the shinobi villages. His own losses had been relatively light; he had made certain of that. 

Medics were picking through the rubble, trying to find the dying before it was too late. They seemed very isolated amid the remains of the carnage. Any civilians who had stayed in the city were quivering in fear within their homes, unable to move.

News of the utter destruction of this city would spread over the world like wildfire. Politicians would all immediately begin playing off it, but he had already taken steps to prevent any true damage. Still, by common word of mouth the story would pass, growing and twisting as it went. What would it become at the ends of the earth? It could be that despite their best efforts, the word shinobi would again become a shadowy threat used to frighten children.

He let a slight sigh escape his lips, assuming that it would go mostly unheard. "Mostly," because the Hokage had just landed silently on the roof behind him.

"We will be departing soon," Naruto said softly. "Konoha will throw open its doors for the shinobi of the world. Our actions that are soon to come will be perhaps more crucial than what has already taken place." Wordlessly Gaara nodded his assent. Naruto stepped to the edge of the roof as well, and both of them surveyed the devastation beneath. A very long silence passed between them.

"In the camps they are rejoicing." Gaara's voice was emotionless and inflectionless. "Many do not understand that our work is hardly completed."

"Yes, there is still great work to be done," Naruto admitted. His gaze focused on the horizon, and he smiled just slightly. "But it's over."

* * *

Please note that there is an Epilogue as well, to be posted after the usual interval. It is about the size of a normal chapter and will bring resolution to a lot of things that aren't seen in this chapter. 

A number of reviewers (all anonymous) mentioned that they felt the relationship between Hinata and Sasuke was rushed, once it got underway. After some thought, I think this boils down to different beliefs about people and relationships in general, but I'll try to respond. It probably won't make you agree with me, but at least it might help you understand where I'm coming from a bit.

Their relationship currently _is_ further than just one that has been starting. For one, they've known each other for several decades at least, if only as friends. Sasuke noted Hinata primarily because she was one of the few that wasn't interested in him and she somewhat noticed him because he was on Naruto's team. Given the amount of time that has passed, I assumed they would have worked at least a few missions together simply based on chance and the limited number of shinobi. All of this goes to a very new phase during this story, in which Sakura and Ino basically force them to be closer. During this time, as you've seen, Hinata realizes that she's in love with Sasuke. So by this point she's more or less accepting of her feelings. As for Sasuke... well, his emotional silence is part of this story. Hinata's uncertainty wouldn't have been the same if you could have seen his thoughts. Thus now that the obstacles in their way have finally been removed, things aren't as uncomfortable as a standard relationship could be.

All of that having been said, I might be wrong and moved too quickly, and I'll keep what you said in mind for future fanfiction, if there is any. I hope you'll all enjoy that aspect of this story anyway.


	25. Epilogue

And so this story comes to an end, after being updated for roughly 14 months. As usual when I complete a story, I find that I have relatively little to say. Many thanks to all those who have read it, regardless of if you reviewed. Those of you who have been consistently providing input, I thank you especially and I would love to hear from you one last time. A special thanks to all of you who critiqued aspects of the story; some of these caused me to edit later parts of the story, some of them will help me in the future as I continue writing.

In the previous weeks I have given serious consideration as to rewriting this epilogue, but in the end I left it unchanged. I believe that it is a fitting end for the series, and I hope it will suffice as a resolution for you. Many of the different threads the story has explored come together, if not wholly tied up, and I like the thematic aspect. After I upload this chapter, I am likely to take a good, long break from fan fiction, but rest assured that if I ever write any more, I will place it here. Fare thee well.

* * *

Epilogue 

The wind blew through Naruto's blond hair as he moved down the street, sending it randomly tumbling about him. It was remarkably refreshing, actually. Things had been pretty weighty in recent times, before with the terrible burden of his job and most recently cleaning up in so many petty ways. He might not like it, but it had to be done.

Today, however, he didn't expect to be too bad at all. In the evening there was one meeting of extreme importance, but there he would only be speaking with a select few, and it should not be tiresome. Prior to that, he anticipated a long time to relax and do nothing. Of course, this morning was going to be enjoyable as well. _How long has it been?_

At least his job was made easier in a few respects. Though the city was crammed full of shinobi from all over the world, it made security not even worth considering. Between the villages there existed such a great feeling of kinship that there was no danger of any fights between them, not that any of the villages had disputes in any case. Anyone else attacking would be either suicidal or insane, considering that every other person you passed on the crowded streets could destroy an army. Today was the last day, but he was going to enjoy it while it lasted.

Before any of that, though, he had a much simpler task: rounding up all the participants. Most of them had been pretty easy to find, though he'd dealt with a few grumpy ones this early in the morning. They'd deal with it, though. He was almost to the end of his list, leaving only Sasuke and Hinata. Neji had told him Hinata was gone, so Naruto figured he might as well try for Sasuke. Chances were he was in his house if he was anywhere at all.

For a moment the Hokage paused on the street, just glancing up at the Uchiha house. It was still a large building, and somehow seemed sad. The damage done to it had been repaired, but the spirit of the home was gone. He had never seen it before the slaughter, but he always felt just a bit wistful around the place.

Most of the time it was empty, Naruto pondered, walking up to the door. Sasuke was the sole inhabitant, and he was almost always on a mission. That was probably part of why the place felt so desolate. _Not that I really care about that... Sasuke-kun is there, and that's all that really matters._

The front door was locked, at least for a moment. After a bit of fiddling, Naruto entered soundlessly, figuring there was no sense in waiting for someone to answer if no one was home. From the few times he'd been here he knew that Sasuke would be in the master bedroom at the far end of the ground floor. He was probably awake, but it couldn't hurt to check.

As he moved down the hall, Naruto became aware of Sasuke's chakra, exactly where it should be. Perhaps he'd slept in, then. Reaching the door at the end of the hallway, Naruto rapped on it with the back of his hand.

"Yo!" he called. "You aren't going to forget about the class reunion, are you? People are gonna start arriving in less than a half hour!" For just a moment Naruto paused, cocking his head to the side. "Don't make me kick your sorry behind out of bed!"

"Patience, Naruto-san, is generally considered a virtue." The door glided open, revealing Sasuke standing in his black cloak, eyes glimmering over the edge of his collar.

"Bah," Naruto scoffed easily, a slight grin affixed on his face. "You are coming, though, right?"

"I will be there," Sasuke nodded just slightly, sweeping past Naruto silently. The other shinobi remained by the door for a moment longer.

"Oh, good morning, Hinata-chan!" he greeted her in a friendly manner. Hinata had also emerged from the doorway, wearing a loose robe.

"Good morning, Naruto-kun."

"Say," Naruto scratched the back of his head, eyes squinting. "What are you doing at Sasuke-kun's house this early in the morning? Don't you generally stay at Neji-san's? Why does your robe have the Uchiha clan symbol on it, anyway?"

"Um, I..." Hinata began fidgeting, and Naruto laughed.

"No, I'm just kidding, I assure you. Even I'm not that dense. I realize you're married now, and I approve whole-heartedly." He gave her a trademark grin and a gentle, brotherly pat on the shoulder. "You're coming too, right?"

"You mean the reunion this morning? Yes; I don't think I'd want to pass up a chance to see everyone again. We don't get to do that very often, after all."

"All too true," Naruto nodded, turning from the house. "See you there."

* * *

Back against the cool wall, Sasuke merely watched from the shadows. He occasionally took a slight sip from his cup, more for the sake of appearances than anything else. It wasn't that he didn't want to be with everyone else, or that he was bored, but simply that he had no urge to do anything other than watch. 

The few people that he had wanted to talk to he had already spoken with. Those that played large roles in his life he would be seeing again soon. For now, it was far more enjoyable to simply watch everyone. People that he had known since he first entered the academy, now all adults having gone their separate ways. In some ways, people changed so much, and yet in others it was as if they hadn't changed at all. All these people... no, his friends, were being exactly who they were, and it was a calming sight.

"So why are you back here?"

Sasuke's eyes slid to the right, though he recognized Temari's voice. She was leaning against the same wall he was, also mostly in the shadows. When Sasuke looked away she did as well, both observing the party.

"I feel no need to be out there," Sasuke answered simply.

"That's basically what I figured. Personally, I've been sticking to the edges mainly because I feel a bit out of place here. I'm here because Shikamaru is, but still... don't get me wrong, you guys are all great, but this is _your_ reunion, and I don't really belong."

"Understandable."

"Somehow I knew you'd say something like that." Temari's face shifted to a slight smile. "I admit I'll be more comfortable once we're back in Wind Country. The change of scenery has been pretty nice, though. And it is always interesting to see so many people."

"You have a reason to be here," Sasuke spoke after a slight pause. "But what is Kankuro-san doing here?" The Sand shinobi was currently at a table opposite Kiba, draining a glass. Even as Sasuke spoke, Kiba filled his own glass and drank in retaliation. Shaking his head in an effort to restore his vision, Kankuro poured himself another glass.

"Sheer boredom," Temari told him simply. "He has nothing to do here at all, yet we're staying until Gaara-san leaves. It is just like him to get into a drinking contest..."

"Is that all?" Kankuro slurred, raising an eyebrow at Kiba. Immediately the other shinobi bristled.

"Is that all? What do you mean? I can and will drink you under the table, punk!" The two of them continued, briefly holding Sasuke's attention. He was brought back to his location by Temari, whose gaze was fixed elsewhere as she spoke.

"It's good to see him back here," she said softly. Sasuke followed her eyes to Shikamaru, who was slouching just beside the table of food. Chouji loomed beside him, laughing about something as the two chatted. "He has good friends."

Instead of answering, Sasuke let his eyes wander throughout the reunion. Everyone was here. No one had died and all of them were healthy enough to come back. The only people standing alone were Shino and Neji, and they looked as though they preferred it that way and intended to keep it such. On the far side of the room Lee had one arm around Tenten casually. Both of them were listening with great amusement to Naruto, who was making exaggerated gestures with his hands.

"And then," Naruto explained, "he was like 'Do you truly think that you can defeat me? Your power is nothing compared to mine! Blah blah blah' - I think you get the drift. Anyway, though, he ended his little rant with 'Mortal fool!' I wasn't really expecting him to burst into monologue, so the only thing that occurred to me to say was 'Immortal fool!'"

"You actually said that?" Lee seemed to be trying to hide a snicker. "How did he respond to it?"

"He stopped in the middle of a hand seal and just stared at me. I figured I was on a roll, so I started making stuff up. Just on the spur of the moment, you know? I swear, I can't remember much of it, other than that it was some of the lamest stuff ever to come out of my mouth, which I can admit is saying something. I'm pretty sure it ended with 'And that is why you will always be defeated!'"

"That doesn't even make any sense!" Tenten burst out, laughing as she did so.

"Wait, wait," Lee began, "I think I've got something just as bad. There's a really small village called Hidden Waterfall..."

Several small tables were in one corner of the room, comfortable benches circling them. Hinata leaned back in one of them, punch glass in hand. She wasn't drinking at the moment, and yet she felt no need whatsoever to fidget with her cup. A slight smile appeared on her face. It looked as though at least one lesson hadn't been lost.

Just then two people slipped onto the bench on either side of her. Hinata blinked at Sakura and Ino, wondering what they could be doing, especially with such expressions. Immediately Ino put one arm around her shoulders and glanced about conspiratorially.

"Just a word to the wise," she whispered. "There's some silly rumor that you were near Sasuke's house last night."

"And you're about to be descended upon by idiots who've heard the rumor," Sakura added. "Anyway, gotta go warn Sasuke-san." She slipped away, moving to his shadowed corner, and Hinata followed her with her eyes, blinking in slight confusion. It had been a long time since she had seen Sakura so friendly.

"Um, think fast," Ino muttered, looking at something over Hinata's shoulder. "I'm going to look busy. You can handle yourself, right?"

"I should be able to," Hinata answered with a slight smile. Ino dashed away to Shikamaru and Chouji, who greeted her in a friendly manner. This brief exchange so stunned Hinata that she didn't develop the presence of mind to move until it was too late and she was hemmed in on all sides by younger Leaf shinobi, probably all Sasuke fangirls.

"Oh. My. Gosh." one of them began. "Are you Hinata-san? Did you really-" Her voice cut off as a massive amount of chakra descended upon them. Eyes widening, the girl looked over her shoulder to see Neji standing behind her, taking a small sip from his drink. He was mostly just standing there, not saying anything. Hinata's expanded field of vision could also see Shino positioned across the table. Similarly, he said absolutely nothing, gracefully carrying a glass but never actually drinking from it.

Neji and Shino continued to face one another from opposite sides of the group, looking for all the world like they were having a casual conversation without the conversation. Their silence, not to mention their chakra, killed whatever the other girls had been going to say. Time dragged on, and neither shinobi seemed inclined to move. Eventually all of them left, probably to look for Sasuke.

Calmly raising an eyebrow at Hinata, Neji moved off to stand elsewhere. Shino readjusted his glasses and likewise vanished. Once again alone at her table, Hinata let herself smile just slightly and leaned back.

From his safe vantage point at the door, Sasuke smiled just slightly beneath the collar of his cloak. All of them had come together, with everyone playing their roles. He would not have expected anything more, and he would not have been satisfied with anything less. It was a reunion indeed.

* * *

The shinobi at the gate looked at him suspiciously for a moment but eventually let him through. After all, he seemed harmless enough, and he was leaving the city, not entering it. Letting someone go couldn't do any harm, could it? 

He had chosen this time of day because he knew there would be almost no one about. Many of them were currently celebrating their ultimate victory, the Leaf shinobi were all occupied elsewhere and those that were truly powerful would soon be having a very important meeting. No one was required to be at the gates, but some still were. At this hour he had the highest probability of being let outside without a problem, judging from the patterns of previous days.

Matthew stopped a short distance from Konoha and removed the broad hat that had formerly eclipsed his features. Wind immediately struck his face, blowing his hair back. Completely expressionless, he remained facing the wind, not yet wanting to move. There would be time for that later.

"Hello, Sasuke." He broke the silence, turning to glance behind him, where the shinobi he had named melded from the shadows as if summoned.

"And how did you sense me this time?" Sasuke asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I didn't," Matthew told him. "But I knew you would come."

"Perhaps I should have expected that. You probably have a general idea of what I will tell you as well. The shinobi of Hidden Leaf wish to extend to you an invitation to stay within the city, as we acknowledge the role you have played in this conflict." Sasuke's eyes flickered to the side. "Given proper training, you could become a powerful warrior indeed."

"Perhaps," Matthew nodded somberly. "I mean no disrespect to you or your profession, but I think at this point I would much rather just be a doctor. This world has warriors enough."

"Then so be it." Sasuke nodded once and began to slip back into the shadows before Matthew interrupted him.

"I would ask a favor of you, however. If at all possible, I do not wish to be remembered in the records of these events. I am..." Matthew paused, though it was a very different pause from his usual, "very tired. Tired of playing a major role in the world, tired of this conflict, and indeed tired of the life that has been forced upon me.

"Now, I think it is merely time to start over again. I have already erased all mundane records of my existence, and only the data held by the world's shinobi remains. I would like to completely disappear, if you do not mind."

"It can be done," Sasuke told him. "But regardless, Matthew-san, you will always have a home in Konoha."

For a moment Matthew merely watched him, expression blank, then a slight smile appeared on his face. He said no more, but his eyes spoke his farewell. Turning away, he continued down the road that extended as far as the eye could see. His steady pace continued until he was lost in the horizon...

* * *

The park was an extremely quiet place, and Sakura liked it that way. She wasn't really going anywhere, but she knew she didn't want to meet anyone on the way. As things were, they were desolate, which matched her own state of mind almost perfectly. In this season the leaves were just beginning to die, occasionally twisting past her. 

It was such a romantic place, and she was very conscious of how alone she was. As soon as the general celebration finished, her chances would plummet once more. She already knew that Naruto was going to send her on a fairly minor mission as soon as he stopped being lazy long enough to do paperwork. He said something about needing to do the non-destructive jobs to help rebuild the world's confidence in its shinobi. Mentally, she could agree with him, but that didn't mean she didn't hate it.

Soon she'd be off to some backwater town with no chance of being with Sasuke. He had responded fairly well when she had told him of the approaching mob, which is to say that he didn't give her a cold stare. Actually, his expression had been more bemused than anything. Still, it had been encouraging... if only he wouldn't be leaving on another A Ranked mission in a few days.

Why, oh why, had she been so stupid? They'd been together on an entire S Ranked mission and all she'd accomplished was making him hate her more. Of course, Ino had done exactly the same thing... but that didn't seem to matter so much anymore. Apparently Ino was interested in other things now, which was fine with Sakura. How could she have been too dense to realize she was annoying him? Hopefully she had made some positive impact, and maybe he would remember her in a good sense. Maybe next time they met he would be feeling a bit less icy.

Wistfully she played with a strand of her hair, and her eyes widened as she did so. Slowing considerably, she looked at her own hair in wonder. When had it grown so long again? It had been so many years ago that she had cut it, wanting to be a useful member of the team... she had not noticed as it had slowly lengthened. She needed to cut it. Soon.

That decision made her think back even further, to how she had grown it out because she had heard Sasuke liked long hair. Ironically, that hair symbolized all the things he apparently didn't like about her. If only she could have it both ways... Sasuke's tastes might have changed, or the rumor could have been wrong in the first place. It would be perfect if he liked short hair now...

"That's not true at all," he would say. "I think you'll be beautiful no matter how you do your hair, but I really do like it short."

She shook her head in an effort to clear it. Still having fantasies, was she? But it didn't matter, even if - wait. That _hadn't_ been her imagination. That had actually been his voice! Soft as if distant, but definitely real! Discerning that the voice had come from just around the curve in the path, she slipped around it...

...just in time to see Sasuke smooth back a lock of Hinata's hair with a slight smile. They were ahead of her on the path, standing on a thin bridge over a small stream. And... and... Sasuke was holding Hinata? Close to him? How could- at that point Sakura slipped backward. Her vision started to darken, and she dropped toward the ground.

Before she struck a hand caught her gently, pulling her back to her feet. She gasped in surprise as the mists of chakra floated away from Sasuke beside her. He was still holding Hinata, which nearly made her fall again, but he had caught her. Now Sasuke was facing her, his expression slightly concerned but with raised eyebrows.

"Um," Sakura began awkwardly. "I'm sorry to interrupt you... I think I should probably go." Beginning to blush, she whirled and rushed back down the path.

"Take care of yourself, Sakura-san," Sasuke said softly at her back. Her eyes widened, but she kept moving. A few minutes ago, if he had said something like that she would have swooned, but now... Hinata? How was that possible? It looked like her chances were absolutely crushed. Yet... a few minutes ago, realizing that would have thrown her into depression, but now... now she just wasn't sure.

It was annoying, but she had to admit, they looked kind of cute together...

He watched her as he went, his face shifting to a dark expression as soon as she was out of sight. Though he was glad to see that she had taken the revelation fairly well, the interruption had been rather annoying. With a sigh he turned back to Hinata, but discovered that she was only smiling serenity. The severity of his expression lessened considerably.

"Maybe I should talk to her?" Hinata suggested.

"Eventually," Sasuke answered, putting his arms around her shoulders again. She melted against him happily, and they remained together silently. In the center of Hidden Leaf, amid the slowly falling leaves, two were one.

* * *

The central room of the Hokage's residence was generally a busy place. Most days there was plenty of work to be done, shinobi filing in and out with reports and orders. Often one could find several customers looking to petition the Hidden Leaf for some sort of task, and probably the Hokage himself attempting to shirk his duties. 

Not today. Only five people were in the large room, standing in a circle. All of them were wearing less formal garb than before, though it was still obvious each was the Kage of their respective village. Naruto stood at the head of the group, pondering his words. At his right Gaara stood with his arms folded, neither moving nor speaking. The Mizukage stood at Naruto's left, brushing back a long lock of blue hair and waiting. Turned slightly away from the group was the Raikage, who was rolling and unrolling a scroll in his hands. Filling out the circle was the Tsuchikage, who stood with her hands on her hips impatiently.

"Thank you for coming here," Naruto said at last. "I'm glad that everyone is relaxing here for the moment, but I'm sure you all know we have a lot yet to do." There was a general murmur of assent around the circle. "It won't be long before we all return to our own countries, and we'll all have our own problems with politicians.

"I stand by what we agreed before: from this day forth, the shinobi villages will bow to no ruler. But that is part of what I came to speak with you about today. We cannot continue to operate as we have in the past. If we continue on our way stubbornly, I believe we will break just as a stiff tree breaks before the wind.

"Instead, it is time for us to live on. All this carnage has a lesson to teach us: the people of the world fear us, and this war is what that fear results in. Oh, sure, it requires a few nuts and a bunch of other stuff, but the base of it all is fear and hatred. When we continue, we must keep this in mind. This is the era of shinobi, my friends, and I believe it will only continue to grow greater and greater."

Four pairs of eyes watched him as he fell silent. There was a long pause, and then Naruto scratched the back of his head.

"Um, yeah, that's it. I'm done. Man, I hate making speeches..."

"Actually, Hokage-san, I think that will do just fine," another of the Kages told him. "Let's move on, shall we?"

All of them nodded their agreement, and then the shinobi vanished into the shadows.


End file.
